BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 

o 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


UNDER  the  above  title  will  be  issued,  in  rapid  succession,  a 
series  of  stories  by  the  most  popular  Foreign  and  American 
authors.  These  will  be  stories  with  a  single  continuous  plot, 
containing  the  pith  of  what  in  more  pretentious  works  is 
usually  extended  over  a  wide  field.  The  series  will  be  hand 
somely  printed,  tastefully  bound  in  cloth,  and  published  at  75 
cents. 

No.  1.— THE  COMING  RACE.  By  BULWER  LYTTON. 
"Together  with  his  usual  strength  of  style  and 
power  of  arousing  interest,  '  The  Coming  Race ' 
contains  a  vein  of  philosophy  peculiarly  inter 
esting  to  those  who  study  social  questions  and 
science." 

No.  a.— THE    BELLS.     A    Romantic    Story   from    the 
French  novel,    "  Le  Juif  Polonais."      By  MM. 
ERCKMANN-CHATRIAN,  authors,  also,  of  the  play 
"The  Bells,"  which  is  founded  upon  this  story. 
No.  3.— POWDER  AND  GOLD.     A  Story  of  the  Franco- 
Prussian  War.      From   the    German  of    LEVIN 
SCHtlCKING. 
No.  4.— A  BROWN-STONE  FRONT.     A  Story  of  New 

York  Society.    By  CHANDOS  FULTON. 
No.  5.— THE  MAIDEN  OF  TREPPI.     A  Romance  of 
the   Apennines.      From    the   German  of   PAUL 
HEYSE. 

No.  6.— NOT  IN  THEIR  SET ;  OR,  DIFFERENT  CIR 
CLES  OF  SOCIETY.  From  the  German  of 
MARIE  LENZEN. 

No.  7.— HELENS  MORTEN.  From  the  German  of 
PAUL  HEYSK. 

HENRY  I«.  HINTON,   Publisher, 

No.  744  BROADWAY,  NEW  YORK. 


BUCKSKIN   MO8E; 


OB, 


LIFE  FROM  THE  LAKES  TO  THE  PACIFIC, 


AS 


ACTOR,     CIRCUS-RIDER,    DETECTIVE,     RAJST- 

G-ER,    G-OLD-DIG-G-ER,    INDIAN    SCOUT. 

AND    G-UIDE. 

WRITTEN    BY    HIMSELF. 


'There  nre  more  things  in  heaven  nnd  earth,  Horatio, 
Than  are  dreamt  of  in  your  philosophy." — HAMLET. 


EDITED,    AND    WITH   ILLUSTRATIONS, 

BY  C.    G.    ROSENBERG. 


i 


NEW    YORK: 

HENRY    L.    HINTON,    PUBLISHER,    744    BROADWAY. 
1873. 


34 
X 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1873,  by 

CUETIS     B.     HAWLEY, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


Stereotyped  at  the 
WOMEN'S     PRINTING     HOUSE, 

50,  58  and  60  Park  Street, 
New  York. 


PREFACE. 


As  a  young  author,  although  scarcely  what  the  world  would 
consider  a  young  man,  I  should  scarcely  feel  inclined  to  say  a 
word  in  presenting  this  volume  to  it,  were  it  not  that  I  wish  the 
public  to  comprehend  one  of  the  two  reasons  which  have  induced 
me  to  write  it.  As  it  would  be  idle,  even  for  a  man  of  decided 
literary  genius,  to  deny  that  pecuniary  profit  is,  in  most  instances, 
the  incentive  to  the  exercise  of  his  power,  so,  in  a  humbler  fashion 
(for  I  consider  myself  a  man  of  no  genius),  I  will  scarcely  affirm 
that  I  do  not  look  with  a  degree  of  longing  on  the  possible  suc 
cess  of  my  first  effort. 

Let  me,  however,  frankly  say  that  I  have  another  and  a  stronger 
reason  for  writing  this  work. 

While  hoping  that  I  have  not  thrust  this  into  undue  promi 
nence,  as  I  have,  in  every  case,  made  it  secondary  to  the  facts 
which  are  detailed,  it  is  my  wish  to  demonstrate  to  the  public  of 
the  United  States,  that  the  manner  in  which  the  Government  pro 
tects  the  settler  is  neither  good  for  him  nor  for  the  Indian.  It 
must  equally  fail  in  satisfying  its  children  and  its  vassals.  At 
times,  it  leaves  the  first  totally  unprotected.  When  they  grow 
accustomed  to  the  habit  of  self-protection,  it  not  infrequently 
represses  the  sturdy  independence  thus  begotten,  instead  of  guid 
ing  it  by  the  ability,  wisdom,  and  honesty  of  its  appointed  offi 
cials.  In  like  manner,  it  has  no  settled  course  of  policy  with  the 
latter.  At  one  time  it  bribes,  and  at  another,  it  lashes  them  into 
subjection. 

Perhaps,  the  settler  is  not  entirely  elevated  in  character,  nor  the 
Indian  thoroughly  debased.  But  this  wavering  and  uncertain 
line  of  policy  cannot  do  otherwise  than  lower  the  nature  of  the 
first,  while  it  certainly  cannot  raise  that  of  the  last. 

That  one  considers  his  Government  as  weak  and  capricious, 
while  this  one  believes  it  to  be  both  tyrannical  and  asinine. 

In  addition  to  this,  those  who  are  selected  to  command  the 
troops  employed  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Reservations,  or  to 
act  as  Indian  Agents,  are,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  utterly  igno- 


6  PREFACE. 

rant  of  the  nature  of  the  savage  with  whom  they  have  to  deal,  the 
character  of  the  country  in  which  they  have  to  move ;  and,  in  the 
lattsr  position,  not  infrequently  deficient  in  one  of  the  cardinal 
virtues — that  of  honesty.  In  this  last  case,  they  will  not  only  dis 
gust  the  settler,  but  enrage  the  savage,  who.  on  the  score  of  his 
own  dishonesty  and  treachery,  is  far  less  disposed  to  smile  at 
these  vices  in  others,  when  he  himself  suffers  from  their  exercise. 
The  false  philanthropy,  also,  is  deeply  injurious,  which  believes 
in  the  possibility  of  guiding  uneducated  nature  without  a  due 
degree  of  compulsory  restriction. 

If  in  mentioning  these  few  points  in  relation  to  the  dealings  of 
our  Government  with  the  white  settler  and  the  red-skin,  I  awaken 
the  attention  of  the  public  to  the  real  obstacles  for  the  preserva 
tion  of  a  steady  and  creditable  peace  on  the  Indian  territory  and 
in  the  Reservations,  without  the  complete  extermination  of  the 
original  inhabitants  of  my  country,  I  shall  be  satisfied.  Nor  do  I 
feel  that  I  have  said  nearly  as  much,  nor  said  it  one-tenth  as 
strongly,  as  the  necessity  for  plain  speaking  might  have  justified 
me  in  doing. 

Before  concluding,  I  would,  however,  call  attention  to  oife  por 
tion  of  my  volume  which,  without  corroborative  proof,  might 
cause  considerable  doubt  as  to  my  veracity.  This  is  my  positive 
mention  of  the  existence  of  Masonry,  of  my  own  knowledge, 
among  the  Cheyennes,  and  by  hearsay  from  them,  among  other 
Western  tribes. 

If  I  am  right,  it  was  in  1854,  that  Judge  Harrison,  of  Red 
Bluffs,  in  California,  with  his  wife  and  children,  was  captured  by 
the  Cheyennes.  Like  myself,  he  was  a  Mason,  and  was  indebted 
to  that  circumstance  for  the  liberation  of  himself  and  his  family. 
This  he  told  me  in  Susanville,  where  he  afterwards  died.  "When 
he  mentioned  this  circumstance  to  me,  he  showed  me  a  war-club 
presented  to  him,  which  was  almost  identical  in  its  decorative  carv 
ing  with  my  own,  and  which  is  now,  or  lately  was,  in  the  pos 
session  of  his  widow.  Nor  have  I  any  reason  to  doubt  that  there 
may  be  others  now  living,  who  have  also  been  indebted,  for  a  sim 
ilar  immunity,  to  the  fact  of  their  belonging  to  the  Masonic  order. 
While  touching  upon  this,  I  might  also  mention  that  Peter  Las- 
sen,  killed  by  the  Indians,  at  Black  Rock,  in  1859,  was  the  first 
Mason  who  carried  a  Charter  to,  and  founded  the  first  Masonic 
Lodge,  on  the  Pacific  coast.  Peace  be  with  the  old  man's  ashes. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

How  I  SOLD  POP-CORN 16 

MY  CAPTURE  OF  JACKSON 31 

SPOTTING  A  COUNTERFEITER .34 

A  SECOND  OFFER  OF  MARRIAGE 63 

MY  FIRST  APPEARANCE  IN  SUSANVILLE 92 

A  STRUGGLE  FOR  LIFE      .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .  125 

THE   MONUMENT    ERECTED   TO   PETER   LASSEN   IN   HONEY 

LAKE  VALLEY 102 

BEING  REQUESTED  TO  CHANGE  TREES      .        .        .  .  119 

BOUND  TO  THE  STAKE        . 140 

AN  UNEXPECTED  ALLY 155 

CLO-KE-TA'S  WARNING 222 

TAKING  PAYMENT  .  249 


CHAPTER  I. 

MY  FIRST  EXPERIENCE  IN  THE  CIRCUS — AN  ACCIDENT  AND  A 
CHANGE  OF  CALLING — FAMILY  AFFECTION — POP-CORN — A  LIT 
TLE  CHEEK,  AND  A  GREAT  DEAL  OF  DISMAY — SUCCESS  AS  A 
DEALER  IN  GRAIN— BEING  AN  ACTOR— CAUGHT  AGAIN — 
BLOOD,  AND  ITS  CONSEQUENCES— BAILED  OUT,  AND  IN  AGAIN 
—  THE  GOOD-NATURED  IRISHMAN  —  CHANGE  OF  VENUE  — 
ANOTHER  PROFESSION. 

ACTOR,  trapper,  scout,  gold-digger,  and  guide,  my 
life,  very  unlike  that  of  most  of  my  readers,  has  been 
one  of  plenty  of  change  and  adventure,  but  certainly 
not  of  money-making.  They  say  "  A  rolling  stone 
gathers  no  moss."  I  have  had  good  reason  to  feel  this 
proverbial  truth,  having  been  a  wanderer  on  the  face, 
if  not  of  this  earth,  at  all  events,  of  this  continent. 

My  earliest  recollection,  which  is  worth  my  own 
remembrance,  is  a  decidedly  unpleasant  one.  When 
no  more  than  eight  years  of  age  I  was  connected  with 
the  Circus  of  Dan  Rice.  Necessarily,  I  was  a  very 
unimportant  member  of  it;  and  not  feeling  that  it  was 
in  every  respect  what  I  thought  a  circus-life  ought  to 
be,  I  took  it  into  my  head  to  run  away  from  it.  Before 
I  had  covered  sufficient  ground  to  get  out  of  the  agent's 
reach,  he  caught  me,  and  I  had  the  gratification  of 
being  very  well  and  soundly  flogged.  The  smart  of 
this  judicial  visitation  upon  my  skin  still  recurs  to  me 
at  times,  and  renders  the  locality  in  Kentucky,  where 
the  flogging  took  place,  a  very  sore  spot  in  my  memory. 
I  consequently  will  not  name  it. 


10  BUCKSKIN    HOSE. 

In  spite  of  this  escapade,  I  gradually  became  a  pro 
ficient  in  bare-back  riding,  vaulting,  on  the  slack-rope 
and  in  the  trapeze-performance,  excelling  all  the  boys 
attached  to  the  circus,  and  in  consequence  became  the 
pet  of  Old  Dan,  with  whom  I  remained  for  three  years. 
My  youthful  ambition  to  shine  in  this  career  was,  how 
ever,  brought  to  an  untimely  close.  An  uncle  of  mine 
discovered  me  on  the  Mississippi,  and  immediately 
wrote  to  my  father,  who,  at  the  time  I  left  home,  had 
been  the  landlord  of  the  United  States  Hotel  in  Ga 
lena.  Making  a  somewhat  wrathful  pilgrimage  in 
search  of  his  missing  offspring,  he  caught  up  with  me 
at  some  small  place  in  Kentucky,  reclaimed  me  from 
the  vocation  of  my  choice,  and  after  taking  me  home 
and  chastising  me  in  a  truly  parental  fashion,  bound 
me  out  as  an  apprentice  to  the  village  blacksmith.  It 
would  be  needless  to  say,  that  the  forge  was  by  no 
means  as  pleasant  an  occupation,  to  my  youthful  mind, 
as  the  daring  life  on  the  sawdust  of  the  arena. 

Some  six  months  after,  I  forgot  the  parental  scourge, 
and  wrote  a  letter  to  the  manager  of  Older  and  Orton's 
Circus,  which  was  then  performing  at  Portage  City, 
"Wisconsin. 

What  sort  of  a  letter  it  was,  I  can  now  scarcely  tell. 
But  my  education  had  not  been  remarkable  in  its  extent, 
and  it  may  be  presumed  the  orthography  as  well  as  the 
calligraphy,  possibly,  astonished  him  who  received  it. 
If  so,  he  never  mentioned  the  fact  to  me,  but  returned 
me  a  favorable  answer.  Consequently,  I  once  more 
made  tracks,  and  joined  ihem  for  the  season. 

Here  I  was  so  successful,  and  became  such  a  general 
favorite,  that  I  received  the  offer  of  a  star-engagement 
from  Levi  North,  with  whom  I  remained  until  an  injury 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  11 

received  on  the  occasion  of  my  benefit,  in  the  execution 
of  an  unusually  daring  feat  of  horsemanship,  brought 
our  connection  to  an  end.  The  company  were  obliged 
to  leave  me  behind  them  hi  Chicago. 

My  recovery  was  slow  and  tedious.  Although  my 
professional  brethren  displayed  great  kindness  to  me,  in 
every  way,  the  means  I  had  made,  even  with  their  as 
sistance,  were  insufficient  for  my  needs.  Once  or  twice, 
I  thought  of  writing  to  my  relatives  in  Galena. 

The  supposable  wrath  of  my  paternal  proprietor, 
however,  deterred  me  from  doing  so.  The  shiver  of 
filial  fear  at  his  retributive  justice  induced  me  to  make 
an  effort  to  support  myself  in  a  new  field.  This  was  in 
a  grocery  store  at  the  corner  of  Randolph  and  Deer- 
borne  streets,  kept  by  a  man  named  Martin.  It  was 
a  widely  different  sphere  of  exertion  from  that  in  which 
my  previous  employment  had  been  cast,  as  well  as  one 
even  more  different  from  that  in  which  I  was  after 
wards  to  make  my  mark.  Often,  since,  I  have  laughed 
over  this  period  of  my  life.  In  the  Forge  and  the  Cir 
cus,  I  had  learnt  much  which  might  fit  me  for  my  fut 
ure.  But,  it  is  somewhat  curious  for  Buckskin  Mose 
ever  to  have  figured  in  peddling  or  carrying  out  tea 
and  sugar,  potted  fruits  and  whiskey,  with  other  such 
necessaries  and  luxuries,  from  a  corner-grocery. 

But  I  was  not  destined  to  continue  at  this  work  for 
any  length  of  time.  One  day,  a  fire  occurred  on  the 
premises,  and  in  endeavoring  to  rescue  a  keg  of  brandy 
from  the  flames,  I  slipped  upon  the  ice  in  front  of  the 
store — it  was  then  midwinter — and  broke  my  arm. 

This  untoward  accident  threw  me  again  out  of  em 
ployment,  and  I  remember  my  angry  feelings  while  the 
doctor  was  placing  my  maimed  limb  in  splints,  and  I 


12  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

was  thinking  what  I  could  do  for  a  living.  Some  few 
days  after,  when,  worn  out  by  the  suffering  and  con- 
pulsory  inaction  consequent  upon  this  accident,  I  was 
wandering  through  the  streets,  I  stumbled  upon  another 
uncle  of  mine. 

He  was  one  of  the  millionnaires  of  Chicago.  As  many 
men  have  grown  rich  by  the  sudden  growth  of  the  cities 
in  which  they  live,  rather  than  by  their  own  efforts,  he 
had  gained  his  dollars.  But  in  doing  so,  he  had  for 
gotten  his  love  for  those  who  bore  his  name.  At  any 
rate,  he  had  done  so  for  me,  as  far  as  extending  me  any 
helping  hand  in  my  immediate  necessity. 

"  You  must  work,  my  boy !  Only  see  what  I  have 
done.  No  friends  assisted  me.  I  began  at  the  lowest 
rung  of  the  ladder,  and  now  I  am  pretty  well  off  in  the 
world.  God  bless  you !  " 

Then  he  tapped  me  on  the  shoulder  in  a  benevolent 
manner,  and  walked  on,  never  thinking  of  assisting  the 
beneficence  he  had  asked  to  bless  me. 

But  I  had  to  live.  With  my  broken  arm,  what  was 
there  left  for  me  to  attempt?  Davy  Crockett  mentions 
the  shell-corn  business  at  one  period  of  his  eventful  life, 
as  having  suggested  itself  to  him.  Why  should  not  I 
become  a  pop-corn  merchant  in  a  humble  approach  to 
the  calling  the  hero  of  Kentucky  had  once  followed. 
But,  to  my  intense  disgust,  on  diligent  inquiry,  I  could 
find  no  pop-corn  in  the  whole  of  Chicago,  whether  for 
love  or  money,  save  in  one  store.  The  amount  de 
manded  for  this  was  thirty  dollars.  Of  the  last  article 
mentioned  above — money — I  had  none.  Of  the  first,  I 
had  plenty.  But  this  was  not  a  circulating  medium. 
As,  with  my  unlamed  hand,  I  was  scraping  my  forehead 
in  the  hope  of  exhuming  an  idea,  I  looked  up  and 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  13 

found  myself  in  front  of  a  grocery  store.  Its  owner  was 
standing  behind  the  counter.  His  face  wore  a  benevo 
lent  and  kindly  expression.  At  no  time  in  my  life,  from 
that  in  which  I  ran  away  from  Dan  Rice's  Circus,  have 
I  been  long  in  forming  a  determination.  So  I  walked 
in,  and  asked  him  for  the  loan  of  the  money,  with  which 
I  intended  to  monopolize  the  pop-corn  trade. 

"  Thirty  dollars  ! "  he  exclaimed. 

He  was  profoundly  astonished,  and  on  reflection,  I 
am  compelled  to  say,  well  he  might  be. 

"  That's  the  exact  sum  I  want,"  was  my  answer. 

"But,  young  fellow!  you're  an  entire  stranger  to 
me." 

"  So  you  are  to  me,"  I  undauntedly  replied.  "  I 
don't  know  you  from  Adam  or  any  other  fellow.  But 
I  like  your  face,  and  so,  if  you  want  a  lift,  I  don't  mind 
taking  you  with  me  into  the  pop-corn  business." 

He  smiled.  His  smile  was  indeed  a  full-fed  and  jolly 
laugh. 

"  Well ! "  he  said,  "  upon  my  word,  I  rather  like  your 
frank  cheek.  We'll  go  and  see  about  it." 

The  result  of  the  inquiries  of  Mr.  Dobbs,  the  grocer 
in  question,  was  that  lie  not  only  advanced  me  the 
money  to  purchase  the  whole  stock,  but  allowed  me  to 
store  the  corn  in  his  own  establishment.  At  the  time 
it  did  not  strike  me  as  being  so,  but  was  doubtless  the 
result  of  a  sagacious  forethought,  as,  should  I  fail  in 
keeping  my  daily  accounts  square,  he  could  easily  fore 
close  on  my  stock-in-trade.  Be  this  as  it  may,  Mr. 
Dobbs  did  more  for  me.  All  well-regulated  communi 
ties  indulge  in  the  licensing  business — to  a  greater  or 
less  extent.  So  did,  and  probably  does,  Chicago.  The 
unlicensed  sale  of  pop-corn  would  have  been  a  risky  af- 


14:  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

fair.  "When  he  told  me  this,  my  face  fell.  How  was  I 
to  get  a  license. 

Mr.  Dobbs  was  equal  to  the  emergency  on  this  occa 
sion,  also. 

"  Come  along  with  me  to  the  Mayor." 

It  was  the  first  occasion  on  which  I  had  ever  stood  in 
the  actual  presence  of  such  a  high  civic  dignitary.  The 
introduction  was  an  era  in  my  life.  It  would  have  been 
in  that  of  any  boy.  The  reader  may  therefore  imagine 
that  my  equanimity,  which  my  new  friend  had  thought 
proper  to  denominate  "  cheek,"  felt  somewhat  abashed, 
as  the  magistrate  looked  up  from  his  desk,  and  gazing, 
as  I  fancied,  sternly  at  me,  said : 

"  What  is  the  matter  now,  Mr.  Dobbs  ? " 

"  Mr.  Mayor,"  responded  Mr.  Dobbs,  "  I  wish  to  intro 
duce  to  you  a  young  friend  of  mine,  who  wishes  to  take 
out  a  license  to  sell  pop-corn." 

"  It  will  be  a  hundred  and  fifty  dollars." 

I  looked  from  the  Mayor  to  my  new  friend.  One 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars !  Where'  was  the  money  to 
come  from  ?  I  never  before  felt  so  near  whimpering. 
Very  certainly,  I  have  never  since.  My  boyhood  must 
be  remembered,  as  an  apology  for  this  tendency  on  my 
part.  I  was  unable,  in  the  extremity  of  my  trouble,  to 
ntter  a  word  of  entreaty. 

"  He  has  no  money,  Mr.  Mayor ! "  answered  Mr. 
Dobbs.  "  So  you  must  deal  as  kindly  as  possible  with 
him." 

The  magistrate  laughed,  not  at  what  my  friend  had 
said,  but  at  my  painful  look  of  dismay.  Mr.  Dobbs 
also  chuckled  slightly.  Then  the  Mayor  observed : 

"  I  will  see  what  can  be  done  for  the  lad.  He  seems 
a  bright  young  fellow." 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  15 

After  saying  tins,  lie  named  the  most  liberal  terms 
for  the  license,  and  when  it  was  made  out  by  his  clerk 
and  Mr.  Dobbs  had  paid  for  it,  with  a  very  low  bow,  I 
turned  to  leave  the  office.  At  this  moment  a  gentle 
man  entered,  whom  the  Mayor  introduced  to  my  bene 
factor.  After  doing  so,  he  was  beginning  to  mention 
what  I  had  come  to  him  for,  when  the  new-comer 
turned  to  me,  saying : 

"  Why,  I  know  this  young  lad.     He  is  my  nephew." 

The  Mayor  gazed  at  me  and  Mr.  Dobbs,  with  some 
considerable  surprise,  as  he  ejaculated: 

"Indeed!" 

I  felt  that  my  face  had  crimsoned  up  to  the  very 
roots  of  my  hair,  but  my  reply  was  prompt  and  very 
bitter: 

"  You  are  entirely  wrong,  sir !  " 

It  was  impossible  for  me  to  avoid  recalling  the  fact 
that  he  had  not  made  me  the  slightest  offer  of  assistance, 
while  my  generous  benefactor  had  not  only  loaned  me 
money,  but  given  me  some  three  hours  of  his  time 
— the  last,  possibly,  being  the  greatest  amount  of 
kindness. 

"  How  ? "  said  my  nncle,  knitting  his  brows.  "  Are 
not  you  the  son  of  Mr. ,  of  Galena  \ " 

"Yes." 

"  And  you  were  born  there  ? " 

"  Of  course,  I  was." 

"  Your  father  had  a  brother  in  this  city  ?  " 

"  I  know  he  had." 

"  Then,  I  am  that  brother  and  your  uncle.  You 
know  it,  for  you  spoke  to  me  only  yesterday." 

"  Did  I  ?  "  was  my  angry  exclamation. 

Making  another  bow  to  the  Mayor,  I  turned   and 


16  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

walked  out,  leaving  my  disgusted  uncle  to  stare,  and, 
if  he  was  given  to  profanity,  to  swear  after  me. 

The  pop-corn  business,  so  strangely  commenced,  grew 
and  prospered.  From  my  one  small  basket,  it  gradu 
ally  extended  itself.  At  last  a  regiment — or  rather  one 
small  company  of  boys — with  cans  containing  it,  with 
the  name  of  "  Mose  "  painted  on  them,  strapped  upon 
their  shoulders,  sold  pop-corn  in  the  streets,  the  cars, 
the  theatres,  and  the  hotels.  Why  or  how  I  came  to 
take  the  name  of  "Mose,"  it  is  perhaps  difficult  to 
say.  But  I  had  commenced  life  in  the  Circus,  when 
the  "  Mose "  of  Chanfrau  was  an  universally  quoted 
name  throughout  the  country.  It  had  been  my  name 
on  the  bills  with  Dan  Rice,  Older  and  Orton,  and  Levi 
North.  Remaining  in  my  memory,  it  probably  stuck  to 
me  when  I  embarked  in  my  new  calling. 

Comparative  wealth  seemed  to  be  pouring  in  on  me. 
In  a  measure,  I  was  becoming  not  only  a  lad  of  means, 
but  somewhat  locally  celebrated  under  the  name  of 
my  adoption. 

To  account  for  my  rapidly  gaining  money,'  it  must  be 
remembered  that  one  bushel  of  shelled,  makes  eleven 
of  popped  corn.  My  profits  were  consequently  in  pro 
portion,  even  if  the  whole  trade  of  Chicago,  in  this 
thriftily  manufactured  commodity,  had  not  been  in  my 
hands. 

With  the  termination  of  my  winter's  sale  of  pop-corn 
which  closed,  1  may  state,  with  gratification,  with  as 
much  gain  for  the  good  Mr.  Dobbs  as  for  myself,  I  had 
again  to  think  of  employment.  Luckily,  the  results  of 
my  two  accidents  were  now  entirely  healed,  and  although 
1  could  scarcely  have  risked  appearing  yet  in  the  circus, 
I  saw  no  reason  to  preclude  me  from  going  behind  the 


"  The  pop-corn  business,  so  strangely  commenced,  .grew  and  pros 
pered. — Page  16. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  17 

footlights.  After  some  difficulty,  theatricals  being  less 
overstocked  then,  than  now,  I  obtained  an  engagement 
at  Rice's,  latterly  known  as  MacYicker's  Theatre. 

It  was  here  decided  that  comic  business  was  my 
"  line,"  and  the  public,  not  unnaturally,  were  more  than 
kind  to  one  whom  pop-corn  had  made  a  sort  of  favorite. 

However,  it  was  not  until  the  following  winter  that  a 
positive  success  rewarded  me  in  my  new  profession.  I 
had  been  offered  an  engagement  by  Langrish  and  At- 
water,  of  Wisconsin,  and  accepted  it.  This  was  when 
I  had  nearly  reached  the  rawly  ripe  age  of  sixteen. 
These  managers  gave  me  every  chance  of  displaying 
what  talent  I  chanced  to  have.  Not  only  were  such 
parts  as  Ragged  Pat  and  the  Irish  Tutor  intrusted  to 
me,  but  I  shone  also  with,  I  now  suspect,  a  somewhat 
doubtful  light  in  u  The  Flying  Dutchman,"  "  The  Spec 
tre  Bridegroom,"  "  Nick  of  the  Woods,"  and  "  Ten 
Nights  in  a  Bar-room."  Irishman,  Dutchman,  Cockney, 
Yorkshireman,  and  Yankee  all  came  indifferently  to 
my  share. 

Bright  visions  of  future  reputation  as  a  legitimate 
actor  began  to  rise  upon  me ;  but  at  the  close  of  this 
season,  the  difficulty  of  procuring  another  engagement 
forced  me  to  become  a  theatrical  Arab  in  Yankee 
Simpson's  travelling  company. 

After  a  brief  wandering  under  their  tent,  I  dissolved 
my  connection  with  it,  and  returned  to  my  last  year's 
Eldorado — Chicago.  The  reason  for  my  taking  this 
step,  it  is  unnecessary  to  put  in  print.  The  theatrical 
profession  will  readily  divine  it,  when  they  are  told  that 
shortly  after,  I  formed  a  not  unimportant  member  of  a 
joint-stock  travelling  company,  which  for  the  next  six 
months  ran  through  Illinois  and  Wisconsin.  We  had 


18  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

reached  Racine,  in  the  latter  State,  when  our  co-operative 
speculation  came  to  a  sudden  end.  One  morning,  on 
quitting  our  virtuous  couches,  we  found  that  the  bed  on 
which  our  treasurer  reposed  had  not  been  tenanted. 
The  vagabond  had  "  absquatulated  "  with  the  whole  of 
the  joint-stock  funds. 

Here  was  a  situation  for  the  future  Forrests,  Placides, 
Broughams,  and  Jeffersons  of  the  American  stage — for, 
as  such,  we  considered  ourselves.  We  were  "dead 
broke." 

Four  of  these  budding  reputations,  Wolf,  Sam  Ryan, 
McManus,  and  myself,  were  tendered  by  the  tender 
hearted  public  a  Benefit,  to  rescue  us  from  our  finan 
cial  difficulties.  It  need  scarcely  be  said  with  what  a 
buoyant  sense  of  gratitude  its  pecuniary  results  were 
received  by  us. 

Once  more,  I  struck  for  Chicago.  It  was  in  a  bee- 
line. 

It  need  scarcely  be  explained  that  I,  at  any  rate,  was 
heartily  sick  of  the  joint-stock  travelling  business  in 
theatricals. 

Here,  old  Dan  Emmett,  of  Emmett's  Varieties,  in 
Randolph  Street,  Chicago,  gave  me  a  short  engagement, 
after  the  close  of  which  I  accompanied  Maggie  Mitch 
ell  to  Milwaukie,  where  I  played  with  that  lady  at  the 
Academy  of  Music. 

The  engagement  had  been  for  Miss  Mitchell  most 
successful,  when  one  evening  my  horror  may  be  imag 
ined  at  seeing  the  face  of  my  father  among  the  au 
dience  in  front  of  the  scenes.  For  the  moment,  I  felt 
as  if  I  should  be  glad  to  see  the  stage  open,  and  sink 
through  it.  My  tongue  seemed  cleaving  to  the  roof  of 
my  mouth.  How  I  got  through  my  part,  it  would  be 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  19 

impossible  to  say.  But  I  managed  to  do  so,  and  was  iu 
my  dressing-room  when  the  call-boy  entered  and  in 
formed  me  a  gentleman  was  waiting  to  see  me. 

"Why  was  lie  let  in ? "  I  roared  out. 

"  Please;  Mister !  he  said  he  wanted  to  see  you  on 
most  important  business." 

Rushing  to  the  window  of  the  dressing-room,  I  looked 
out.  It  was  no  use  of  thinking  of  escape,  that  way. 
The  room  was  on  the  third  story.  A  leap  from  it  was 
not  to  be  thought  of,  even  if  the  loose  brick  and  timber 
piled  at  the  base  of  the  wall  of  the  theatre  had  not  ren 
dered  it  doubly  a  mad  experiment.  Delaying  as  long 
as  I  could,  I  was  at  last  forced  to  descend.  It  was,  011 
my  part,  a  decidedly  unrehearsed  scene  in  real  life. 

I  do  not  like  to  speak  of  my  father's  remonstrance, 
or  the  tears  which  accompanied  his  appeal  to  me  to 
return  home.  My  pride  prevented  me  from  weeping, 
but  it  could  scarcely  do  so.  And,  indeed,  when  he 
took  some  considerable  blame  to  himself  for  having 
thrown  me  upon  this  (as  he  was  pleased  to  call  it)  vag 
abond  life,  I  am  not  quite  certain  that  my  eyes  were 
not  wet  as  well  as  his. 

Suffice  it,  that,  at  the  close  of  my  present  engage 
ment,  I  consented  to  comply  with  his  wishes,  and  re 
nounce  the  stage.  Then,  and  only  then,  he  left  me. 

On  my  way  home,  at  the  close  of  the  performances,  in 
Milwaukie,  of  Maggie  Mitchell,  I  had  determined  to 
pause  for  a  day  or  two  with  a  friend  who  was  then  in 
Waukegan.  Lewis  was  considerably  older  than  myself, 
and  since  we  had  first  met  I  had  become  much  attached 
to  him,  as  youth  generally  does  to  greater  years  when 
they  choose  to  associate  with  it.  Here  occurred  my 
third  physical  misadventure. 


20  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

One  evening,  while  walking,  with  him,  down  the 
principal  street,  a  man,  in  company  with  several  others, 
accosted  him. 

What  words  were  interchanged  between  them,  I  can 
scarcely  recollect.  All  I  know,  is,  that  it  was  one  of 
those  inexplicable  quarrels  which  arise  about  females. 

They  came  to  blows,  and  endeavoring  to  separate  the 
two,  I  received  a  heavy  one  upon  my  jaw  from  a  slung- 
shot,  which  knocked  out  two  of  my  back  teeth,  and 
stretched  me  senseless  on  the  ground.  After  this  I 
knew  nothing  more,  save  that  when  I  recovered  con 
sciousness  I  was  led  to  the  room  of  Lewis,  by  himself. 
While  lying  upon  the  bed,  not  yet  aware  of  the  full  ex 
tent  of  the  injury  done  me,  I  was  recalled  to  my  com 
plete  senses  by  a  terrific  clamor  in  the  street.  Then, 
for  the  first  time,  I  learnt  from  Lewis  that  he  had  made 
short  work  of  one  of  the  gang  who  had  attacked  him, 
by  stabbing  him  fatally. 

The  infuriated  populace  had  followed  us,  and  had 
determined  upon  lynching  both,  as  speedily  as  possible. 

Lewis  looked  white,  and  fearfully  scared,  as  he  lis 
tened  to  their  savage  yells.  But  it  must  frankly  be 
owned  that  I  was  as  thoroughly  scared  as  he  was ;  al 
though  I  retained  my  presence  of  mind,  leapt  from  the 
bed,  and  was  about  barricading  the  door  of  the  apart 
ment — because  it  would  have  been  impossible  to  prevent 
them  entering  the  house.  Then  there  came  a  momen 
tary  pause,  and  the  voice  of  some  one  having  authority 
was  heard  in  the  street,  addressing  the  crowd. 

"  Thank  Heaven !  "  cried  Lewis.     "  It  is  the  sheriff." 

The  pause,  however,  had  only  been  momentary.  So 
wild  was  the  fierce  burst  of  derision  that  followed,  I  al 
most  thought  my  companion  had  been  premature  in  his 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  21 

thankfulness.  There  was  a  fierce  struggle  audible  with 
out,  which  lasted  for  some  few  minutes,  and  then  the 
sheriff  and  his  officers  were  victorious.  They  demand 
ed  admittance  in  the  name  of  the  law,  and  after  enter 
ing  the  house,  arrested  Lewis  on  the  charge  of  murder, 
and  myself  as  an  accomplice. 

A  brief  examination,  however,  soon  proved  my  com 
plete  innocence,  and  I  was  discharged,  but  ordered  to 
give  bonds  for  my  appearance  against  my  friend.  Of 
course  I  was  unable  to  provide  the  requisite  sureties, 
being  an  entire  stranger ;  and  in  consequence  was 
locked  up  in  the  debtors'  prison.  Here  was  a  situation. 
With  my  face  swollen  from  the  effects  of  the  blow,  two 
of  my  teeth  knocked  out,  and  my  lip  and  nose  fearfully 
cut,  and  incarcerated  because  I  could  not  get  bail! 
Lewis,  nevertheless,  did  not  desert  me.  A  stranger  in 
Waukegan  who  had  seen  me  in  Milwaukee,  and  had 
heard  part  of  my  story  from  a  friend  of  my  father's, 
recognized  my  name,  and  after  verifying  my  identity 
by  ocular  proof  (it  must  have  been  somewhat  difficult  in 
my  then  disfigured  condition),  wrote  the  particulars  of 
my  trouble  to  him.  He  had  but  just  returned  to  Galena, 
and  was  daily  expecting  me.  Only  judge  what  my  sur 
prise  must  have  been,  on  seeing  him  one  fine  morning 
appear  in  the  place  of  my  confinement.  If  on  our  last 
encounter  I  would  have  avoided  him,  what  would  I 
not  now  have  given  to  have  escaped  seeing  him ;  under 
such  circumstances. 

It  seemed,  however,  that  my  fears  of  his  reproaches 
were  wrong.  He  gave  bail  for  my  appearance  upon 
the  trial  at  the  next  term,  and  took  me  home  with  him, 
without  uttering  a  single  reproach. 

Perhaps,   as  I  have   since   imagined,  he   may  have 


22  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

thought  all  such  reproach  would  have  been  useless  with 
such  a  confirmed  "  ne'er-do-weel "  as  he  must  perforce 
have  believed  me. 

At  the  time  appointed  I,  of  course,  reappeared  in 
Waukegan.  Unfortunately  my  father  had  been  unable 
to  leave  his  home,  never  for  an  instant  imagining  his 
services  might  again  be  required.  Owing,  however,  to 
the  incompetency  of  the  District  Attorney  or  the  astute 
ness  of  my  friend's  counsel,  the  trial  of  the  latter  was 
deferred  until  the  succeeding  term  of  Court ;  and  what 
was  my  disgust  at  finding,  having  surrendered  on  my 
bail,  I  was  again  to  have  a  domicile  under  lock  and  key 
until  the  new  trial,  unless  my  parent  again  put  in  an 
appearance  upon  the  scene.  But,  even  while  the  sheriff 
was  preparing  once  more  to  escort  me  to  jail,  a  voice 
from  among  the  crowd  in  the  Court-room  sang  out,  in 
that  delicious  Irish  brogue  I  had  so  often  endeavored 
on  the  stage  to  imitate  with  my  own  tongue  : 

"  Would  yer  honor  accept  the  likes  of  bail,  for  the 
poor  boy  ? " 

It  must  be  candidly  admitted,  that  I  had  never  before 
entertained  so  warm  a  love  for  the  Irish  brogue.  It 
sounded  like  perfect  music  to  my  ears.  Still  more  did 
it  do  so,  when,  after  a  brief  confab  between  the  Judge 
and  the  District  Attorney,  the  proffered  bail  was  ac 
cepted,  and  with  a  kindly  but  vigorous  slap  on  my 
back,  my  new  bondsman  exclaimed  : 

"  Now !  my  boy,  all  I  ask  of  ye,  is,  that  ye  don't 
throw  me  in  for  the  bail.  When  ye  were  shut  up  be 
fore,  yer  face  didn't  spake  much  for  ye.  But  now,  I 
couldn't  bear  to  see  a  good-looking  fellow  as  ye  are 
trotting  off  to  jail  for  nothing  at  all." 

A  roar  of  laughter  from  those  who  were  present  fol- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  23 

lowed  this  speech.  Very  certainly,  as  my  Irish  friend  said, 
my  "  face  didn't  spake  much  for  me,"  upon  that  previous 
occasion,  if  it  did  possibly  justify  his  warm-heartedness 
now.  But,  as  the  great  dramatist  says  :  "  One  touch  of 
kindness  makes  the  whole  world  kin ;  "  and  to  a  certain 
extent  at  any  rate,  on  this  occasion,  it  did  so.  His  good 
ness  of  heart  had  struck  an  answering  chord  in  the 
bosom  of  all  the  spectators.  They  crowded  around  me, 
offering  their  congratulations,  and  shaking  my  hands 
with  a  vigor  which  might  have  gone  far  to  prove  that 
they  would  have  done  the  same  kindness  for  me,  pro 
vided  they  had  merely  chanced  to  think  of  it. 

Once  more,  I  returned  to  my  father,  and  resided  with 
him  until  the  Court  a  third  time  convened,  when  I 
again  returned  to  Waukegan,  and  proved  to  the  good- 
hearted  Irishman  that  the  lad  he  had  become  bondsman 
for,  was  not  "  the  boy  to  throw  him  in  for  the  bail." 

ISTow,  however,  I  found  that  a  change  of  venue  had 
been  obtained  for  the  trial,  and  I  was  obliged  to  go  to 
Chicago.  It  was  a  fourth  time  deferred,  and  on  my 
inability  or  unwillingness  to  give  new  bonds  in  a  city 
where  I  could  easily  have  procured  bail,  I  was  ordered 
to  prison  for  a  third  time.  The  sheriff,  of  course,  had 
no  discretion  allowed  him  in  obeying  the  order  of  the 
Court.  He  therefore  conducted  me  to  prison,  when  he 
duly  locked  the  door  of  my  cell  upon  me.  Immediately 
after,  he  unlocked  it,  saying  : 

"  Look  here,  Mose  !  I  have  obeyed  orders  and  locked 
you,  up.  Now  I  have  unlocked  the  door,  and  am  going 
to  let  you  out,  if  you  choose  to  act  as  my  deputy." 

Gladly  enough,  I  consented  and  entered  at  once  upon 
my  duties.  It  would  perhaps  be  unnecessary  to  say  that 
the  sheriff  had  a  few  years  since  contributed  by  his 


24  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

own  patronage  to  my  success  as  a  pop-corn  merchant, 
and  had  subsequently  been  acquainted  with  my  theat 
rical  struggles.  In  addition  to  this,  he  had  heard  the 
history  of  my  connection  with  the  case,  and  felt  a 
kindly  disposition  to  befriend  one  who  had  been  un 
fairly  implicated  in  the  matter  from  the  beginning. 


CHAPTER  II. 

As  A  DETECTIVE — HUNTING  UP  A  HORSE  AND  BUGGY — A  RUN 
AWAY  FROM  THE  SHERIFF — ON  THE  TRACK — THE  HIDDEN 
CORPSE — FOLLOWING  THE  MURDERER  UP — STRUGGLE  AND 
CAPTURE — QUICK  JUSTICE — A  GOOD  "UTILITY"  MAN — MOS 
QUITOES  AND  AN  OLD  STEAM-BOILER—" How  RICH  YOU  BE" 
— BECOMING  A  RUM-SELLER — WHAT  is  IN  THE  BONE  WILL 
OUT  OF  THE  FLESH. 

As  his  deputy,  I  endeavored  conscientiously  to  answer 
the  good  opinion  of  the  sheriff.  Suffice  it,  I  so  far  suc 
ceeded,  that  he  recommended  me  very  strongly  to  Pink- 
erton,  the  celebrated  detective  of  Chicago.  At  this  time, 
Pinkerton  was  going  to  Waukegan  for  the  purpose  of 
arranging  the  means  with  the  authorities  there  for 
breaking  up  a  gang  of  counterfeiters,  then  flooding  the 
whole  of  Northern  Illinois  and  Southern  Wisconsin 
with  bogus  money.  x\fter  a  brief  interview  with  me, 
Pinkerton  appointed  me  upon  his  staff,,  and  on  his 
return  from  Waukegan,  left  me  in  that  city. 

Shortly  after  this,  I  received  a  telegram  from  my 
chief.  It  stated  that  a  man,  very  gentlemanly  in  ap 
pearance  (his  description  was  given),  had  stolen  a  horse 
and  buggy  in  Chicago.  The  fellow  had  gone  northward, 
and  Waukegan  was  designated  as  the  place  where  he 
might  probably  fetch  up. 

When  I  received  the  despatch  I  was  with  the  sheriff, 

and  had  just  handed  it  to  him,  when   an   individual 

drove  up  with  a  horse  and  buggy,  both  of  which  closely 

answered   Pinkerton's   description.      This   person   was 

2 


20  BUCK8KIN    M08K. 

hailed  with  the  familiarity  whose  command  is  peculiar 
to  the  functionaries  of  the  Law,  and  as  politely,  and 
with  even  more  oppressive  familiarity,  requested  to — 

"  Get  out ! " 

The  stranger  was  necessitated  to  obey  this  peremptory 
injunction,  and  requested  information  of  its  object  in  a 
blandly  imperturbable  manner. 

u  You  are  my  prisoner,"  curtly  responded  the  sheriff. 

"  For  what,  sir?"  demanded  the  man. 

"  For  stealing  that  horse  and  buggy." 

"  Good  God ! "  was  the  instantaneous  ejaculation. 
"  You  were  never  more  mistaken  in  your  life." 

Certainly,  the  rascal  would  have  made  his  fortune 
upon  the  stage,  his  look  of  astonishment  was  so  perfect, 
while  the  touch  of  indignation  in  his  manner  heightened 
this  appearance  on  his  part  so  admirably.  The  sheriff 
looked  at  me  as  if  in  doubt.  I  nodded  my  head  slightly. 
That  which  the  fellow  was  only  doing  as  an  amateur, 
was  within  my  professional  experience. 

"  Yes,  sir !  you  are  the  man,"  replied  the  sheriff. 

"  In  a  few  minutes,"  said  the  stranger,  "  I  will  prove 
to  you,  you  are  the  most  mistaken  man  in  the  world." 

"How?" 

"  Do  you  know  Mr.  Sutherland,  sir  1 " 

He  had  named  one  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  in 
Waukegan. 

"  Very  well,  indeed  ! "  was  the  response  of  the  sher 
iff. 

"Jump  in  my  buggy,  then,  and  we'll  drive  to  his  house. 
There,  I  can  readily  convince  you,  you  are  thoroughly 
mistaken." 

"  All  right,"  ejaculated  the  sheriff. 

In  spite  of  my  remonstrating  look,  he  jumped  into 


BUCKSKIN    MO8E.  27 

the  buggy,  followed  by  the  stranger,  and  they  drove 
off. 

It  would  be  needless  to  detail  my  reflections.  The 
reader, if  gifted  with  a  fair  share  of  acumen,  can  readily 
determine  them.  In  less  than  three-quarters  of  an  hour 
the  horse  and  buggy  once  more  appeared,  driven  by  the 
sheriff,  lie  had  been  making  the  poor  animal  pay  for 
his  obtuscness. 
.  "  Well !  "  I  inquiringly  uttered. 

"  When  we  arrived  at  Sutherland's,"  said  the  local 
official,  "  the  fellow  got  out  and  rang  the  bell.  He  was 
some  time  in  waiting  for  the  door  to  be  opened.  Then, 
he  told  me  he  would  '  go  round  the  house  to  the  back 
door,  and  wake  them  up.'  I  waited  some  time  longer, 
when  the  front  door  was  opened  by  one  of  Mr.  Suther 
land's  servants.  Naturally  enough,  I  got  out,  expecting 
to  see  the  man  within  the  house.  Would  you  believe  it, 
the  rascal  had  never  entered  it." 

"  Very  decidedly  I  should,"  was  my  exclamation. 

Jumping  into  the  buggy,  I  requested  the  sheriff,  it  is 
to  be  feared  in  a  somewhat  too  dictatorial  tone,  to  "  lay 
it  into  the  horse,"  and  drive  back.  On  arriving  at  Mr. 
Sutherland's,  I  asked  him  to  indicate  to  me  the  way  the 
man  had  gone.  lie  could  only  point  out  the  side  of 
the  house  the  runaway  had  passed  round.  Leaping  out, 
I  prepared  to  track  him.  It  was  then,  that,  for  the  first 
time  in  my  life,  I  discovered,  I  possessed  something  of 
that  sleuth-like  certainty  and  readiness,  which  fitted  me 
for  portion  of  my  future  career. 

The  morning  had  been  somewhat  damp,  and  by  the 
help  of  the  print  his  feet  had  left  upon  a  field  at  the 
back  of  Mr.  Sutherland's  dwelling,  the  fellow's  track 
was  distinctly  visible  for  some  half  a  mile.  Here,  the 


28  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

broken  branches  and  twigs  of  a  low  hedge  proved  that  he 
had  crossed  it  into  a  lane.  On  the  damp  sandy  gravel  his 
track  was  even  clearer.  Then,  he  had  encountered  some 
one  else,  and  near  this  spot  traces  of  a  recent  struggle 
were  apparent.  From  this  point  I  could  merely  see  one 
track,  and  was  induced  to  believe  there  had  been  foul 
play,  and  that  the  fellow  I  was  in  chase  of,  had  contin 
ued  his  flight  alone.  This  led  me  to  make  a  brief  search 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  spot  on  which  the  scuffle 
had  taken  place.  Just  beyond  the  fence,  roughly  con 
cealed  by  torn-up  branches,  lay  the  dead  body  of  a  man. 
The  skull  had  been  crushed  in  as  if  by  the  blow  of  a 
heavy  club,  and  the  pockets  were  turned  inside  out.  I 
raised  the  arm  of  the  corpse  with  ease.  The  muscles 
were  limp  and  flaccid,  not  having  had  time  to  stiffen. 
It  was  evident  that  the  murder  had  but  recently  been 
committed.  My  future  trapper  instinct  was  strong  upon 
me,  and  I  pursued  the  one  trail  for  some  mile  and  a 
half  farther.  There  it  was  lost  upon  a  stretch  of  higher 
and  harder  soil  into  which  the  lane  had  widened.  Half 
an  hour  was  spent  in  vainly  trying  to  detect  it,  and  then 
I  made  up  my  mind  to  return  to  the  town,  and  give  in 
telligence  to  the  authorities  that  a  murder  had  been 
committed. 

After  doing  this,  and  reinforcing  my  somewhat  jaded 
system  with  a  draught  of  good  Monongahela,  I  returned 
with  the  local  police  to  the  place  where  I  had  found  the 
'body. 

On  the  way,  I  had  made  inquiries  about  the  locality, 
and  found  that  some  half  a  mile  beyond  the  spot  where 
I  had  lost  the  trail,  I  should  reach  the  main  road,  which 
led  to  Shiloh.  Convinced  now  that  the  man  was  a 
determined  ruffian,  my  young  professional  pride  was 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  29 

aroused,  and  the  determination  was  already  formed  by 
me  to  capture  him. 

Consequently,  on  reaching  the  scene  of  the  murder,  I 
left  the  authorities  to  convey  the  corpse  to  Waukegan, 
and  recommenced  my  pursuit,  making  every  possible 
inquiry  at  the  houses  and  farms  near  the  road,  until  I 
arrived  at  Shiloh.  But  I  have  neglected  to  state,  that 
on  my  return  to  Waukegan  I  had  disguised  myself  as 
thoroughly  as  possible,  and  placed  in  the  pockets  of  my 
disguise  a  pair  of  darbies,  (handcuffs)  a  revolver,  and 
a  brass-knuckle.  The  suspected  murderer,  and  now 
known  horse-thief,  was  a  man  of  robust,  almost  of  Her 
culean  build.  When  recognized  in  the  buggy,  he  had 
been  dressed  in  the  most  fashionable  style.  Added  to 
this,  he  had  sported  black  flowing  locks,  with  a  dark  and 
well-trimmed  beard.  He  had  now  to  be  found  in  what 
ever  other  guise  of  dress  or  complexion  he  might  choose 
to  adopt,  for  the  criminal  alias  of  person  or  apparel  is 
to  the  full  as — perhaps  even  more  variable  than  that  of 
name. 

My  whole  evening  was  passed  in  Shiloh,  in  wander 
ing  from  one  place  of  resort  to  another. 

As  yet,  my  search  had  been  fruitless.  But  I  never 
dreamt  of  failing  in  it,  because  I  had  determined  to 
succeed.  I  felt  certain,  I  should  capture  my  man. 

At  last,  I  found  myself  in  a  beer-saloon,  where,  while 
standing  at  the  bar  and  in  the  act  of  drinking,  my  eyes 
fell  upon  an  individual  whom  I  instinctively  knew  was 
the  criminal  I  was  in  chase  of.  He  had,  however,  un 
dergone  a  great  change.  His  beard  was  cropped,  or 
rather  it  was  shingled  off  short.  As  for  his  hair,  it  was 
notched  and  jagged,  as  if  it  had  been  curried  with  a 
comb  that  had  razor-like  teeth.  His  dress  was  by  no 


30  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

means  of  that  distinguished  character  which  it  had 
borne  earlier  in  the  day.  This,  however,  arose  more 
from  the  apparently  slovenly  fashion  in  which  it  was 
worn,  than  any  other  change  in  it. 

It  is  true,  he  had  been  unable  to  alter  his  eyes,  al 
though,  now,  when  he  was  off  his  guard,  their  glance 
was  freer  and  more  insolent  than  it  had  been  when  I 
had  first  seen  him. 

Besides,  he  had  kept  with  him  a  cane  which  he  had 
carried  that  morning.  This  was  subsequently  a  damn 
ing  proof  against  him,  as  the  sheriff  of  Waukegan  was 
able,  as  well  as  myself,  to  identify  it. 

When  convinced  beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt 
that  this  was  the  man,  I  quietly  approached  him,  and 
dealt  him  a  heavy  blow  with  my  brass-knuckles  under 
the  jaw. 

This  stretched  him  upon  the  floor.  In  a  moment  I 
was  seated  on  his  chest  and  his  hands  were  secured  and 
pinioned. 

All  had  been  effected  so  rapidly,  that  I  was  again 
upon  my  feet,  before  the  by-standers  had  recovered 
from  their  surprise,  and,  it  might  almost  seem,  before 
the  criminal  could  realize  what  had  occurred. 

The  persons  who  had  been  so  suddenly  rendered  mute 
by  the  rapidity  of  my  assault  upon  the  scoundrel,  now 
found  tongue.  They  approached  me  in  an  anything 
but  friendly  guise,  demanding  what  all  this  meant,  and 
why  I  had  assaulted  "  Jackson  "  in  this  cowardly  fash 
ion.  Only  two  or  three,  as  I  ought  to  mention,  had 
given  him  this  name,  and  these  were  decidedly  the  most 
disreputable-looking  individuals  present.  Naturally 
enough,  opening  my  coat,  I  displayed  my  official  badge, 
and  told  them  of  the  murder  which  the  fellow  had 


u  This  stretched  him  on  the  lloor.     In  a  moment,  I  was  seated  on 
his  chest,  and  his  hands  were  secured  and  pinioned. " — Page  30. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  31 

committed  on  the  morning  just  passed,  for  plunder. 
The  two  or  three  I  have  alluded  to  as  calling  him  by 
name,  slunk  out,  while  the  rest,  changing  their  tone, 
complimented  me  warmly  upon  the  coolness  and  skill 
with  which  they  were  pleased  to  say  the  arrest  had  been 
made. 

As  for  myself,  I  must  own  that  when  I  looked  at 
the  thew  and  muscle  of  my  prostrate  captive,  I  was  far 
more  inclined  to  compliment  myself  upon  the  recklessness 
with  which  I  had,  single-handed,  effected  his  capture. 

Word  was  immediately  despatched  to  the  sheriff,  and, 
by  the  following  morning,  Jackson  was  safely  lodged  in 
the  jail  at  Waukegan,  the  county  seat  of  Lake  County. 
Shortly  after  this,  he  was  indicted  by  the  Grand  Jury, 
and  a  change  of  venue  having  been  granted,  he  was 
removed  for  trial  to  Chicago  ;  where,  pleading  guilty, 
he  was  sentenced  to  be  hanged,  and  paid  the  penalty  of 
his  crime  upon  the  gallows. 

As  for  my  poor  friend  Lewis,  he  had  already  pleaded 
guilty  to  manslaughter,  and  been  sentenced  to  imprison 
ment  for  eight  years.  lie  died  before  the  term  of  his 
imprisonment  had  expired. 

In  those  days,  in  the  West,  justice  was  far  shorter 
and  sharper  than  it  has  recently  been  in  New  York. 
There  was  more  pride  in  the  detection  of  crime,  and 
considerably  readier  justice  in  its  punishment.  Red- 
handed  murder  had  especially  little  chance  of  escaping 
the  prompt  retribution  of  the  Law,  and  it  will,  I  think, 
be  granted  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  metropolis  that 
the  consequent  fear  was  a  tolerably  fair  degree  of  pres 
ervation  for  human  life,  considering  the  character  of 
the  various  elements  from  which  life  in  that  portion  of 
tlio  States  was  then  composed. 


32  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Having  shortly  after  tins  returned  to  my  home,  I 
assumed  the  position  of  under-sheriff  to  my  parent,  and 
lived  for  several  months  somewhat  quietly,  being  lion 
ized  in  no  small  degree  by  my  friends  and  neighbors 
on  account  of  the  capture  of  Jackson.  In  a  few 
months,  however,  Pinkerton,  who  had  evidently  consid 
ered  me  a  good  "  utility "  man  in  the  detective  line, 
wanted  my  services  again.  He  was  engaged  in  ferret 
ing  out  a  gang  of  counterfeiters  and  horse-thieves,  who 
had  been  circulating  bad  notes,  and  thinning  out  the 
stables  above  Chicago.  Their  base  of  operations  had 
been  made  by  them  at  the  foot  of  Little  Dalls,  now 
called  Dallton.  This  was  some  twenty  miles  above 
Portage  City. 

Excitement  was  the  only  thing  I  lacked  while  under 
my  father's  wing,  and  consequently,  in  spite  of  his  re 
monstrances,  I  determined  upon  accepting  the  offer  of 
employment  which  Pinkerton  made  me. 

Starting  at  once,  after  seeing  my  chief,  I  joined  the 
party  with  whom  I  was  to  work,  at  Madison.  Here, 
after  laying  our  plans,  or  rather,  arranging  for  the  exe 
cution  of  those  Pinkerton  had  laid  out  for  us,  we  sep 
arated,  with  the  understanding  that  wherever  we  met, 
we  were  to  proceed  as  if  we  had  been  strangers.  The 
following  day,  myself  and  a  companion  found  ourselves 
at  Big  Bull  Falls.  It  would  be  unnecessary  to  trace 
out  our  after-route  from  place  to  place.  For  some  time 
we  discovered  nothing  which  might  afford  any  clue  to 
the  object  of  our  search.  At  last  we  arrived  at  Grand 
father  Bull  Falls,  when  something  occurred  which  con 
vinced  us  we  had  continued  too  far  in  that  direction. 
We  consequently  returned,  and  took  a  straight  line  to 
wards  Black  River  Woods. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  33 

By  the  bye,  the  man  who  gave  them  this  name  must 
have  had  a  hide  tanned  to  the  toughness  of  a  leather 
boot,  or  he  certainly  never  would  have  omitted  to  com 
memorate  the  plague  of  the  mosquitoes  which  infest  it. 

Of  all  sections  of  the  country  populated  with  this  de 
lightful  insect,  that  I  have  ever  crossed,  this  is  decidedly 
the  worst.  So  much  BO,  that  I  believe  it  must  have  been 
that  part  of  it,  in  which  the  man  we  have  heard  of,  took 
refuge  from  these  winged  atrocities  under  an  old  steam- 
boiler,  amusing  himself  while  in  his  fancied  security  by 
(damping  their  murderous  beaks,  with  an  old  hammer  he 
chanced  to  have  with  him,  to  the  iron  shell  through  which 
they  were  penetrating.  The  result  of  this  style  of  pro 
ceeding  was  perfectly  unforeseen  by  him.  In  some  hour 
and  a  half,  the  muscle  of  the  trapped  mosquitoes  was 
sufficiently  strong  for  them  to  raise  the  iron  shell  and 
fly  off  with  it. 

Be  this  as  it  may,  it  is  a  complete  purgatory.  You, 
in  vain,  try  to  smash  one  mosquito  whose  fangs  you  feel 
in  your  forehead.  While  doing  so,  another  fastens  on 
your  nose,  and  half  a  dozen  more  upon  either  cheek. 
The  amount  of  profanity  they  caused  on  the  tongue  of 
myself  and  my  companion,  I  even  now  look  back  upon, 
with  considerable  contrition. 

The  whole  of  this  portion  of  the  country,  as  far  as 
Black  Hiver,  wras  under  Mosquito  dominion ;  and  when 
we  quitted  it,  it  was  with  the  sincere  hope,  upon  my 
part,  that  nothing  might  oblige  me  to  revisit  it. 

When  we  once  more  met  the  balance  of  our  party  at 
Stevens  Point,  which  had  been  as  unsuccessful  as  our 
selves  in  tracking  out  the  game,  it  is  now  a  question  to 
me  how  our  swollen  and  disfigured  faces  could  be  at  all 
recognizable. 
2* 


34  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

After  Borne  consultation,  it  was  decided  that  portion 
of  the  party  should  strike  for  the  Little  Eauclaire  River, 
while  another  should  go  up  the  larger  stream  called 
the  Big  Eauclaire.  Myself  and  companion  remained  for 
a  few  days  at  this  place,  and  finding  nothing  deter 
minate,  dressed  ourselves  as  raftsmen, — in  red  shirts 
and  overalls,  making  up  our  minds  to  separate.  Then, 
I  hired  myself  out  to  run  the  Caughnaut  Rapids,  on  a 
trip  to  Plover  Portage. 

It  was  on  our  way  in  return,  when  "gigging  back," 
as  the  raftsmen  term  it,  that  I  first  caught  a  glimpse  of 
success.  One  of  the  pilots,  had  to  employ  a  term  well 
used  in  the  west  and  south  of  the  States,  "  cottoned  "  to 
me.  This  was  probably  on  account  of  my  youth  and 
apparent  verdancy,  as  well  as  my  muscle.  I  was  just 
the  sort  of  fellow  he  evidently  supposed  could  be  em 
ployed  as  a  green  hand  in  his  illegal  calling.  We  had 
been  talking  of  the  ways  of  living  in  the  Yfest  one 
morning,  when  he  said  : 

"  Look  here,  young  fellow,  thar's  many  a  way  of 
making  enough  to  live,  that's  easier  than  your'n  is." 

"  How  is  that  ?  " 

"D'yer  see  this?" 

At  the  same  time  he  pulled  out  of  his  pocket  a  lot  of 
"  queer,"  or  counterfeit  bills.  He  must  have  had  more 
than  two  hundred  dollars  of  bogus  money  of  different 
denominations — fives,  threes,  and  twos — with  him. 

"  How  rich  you  be !  "  I  ejaculated,  with  an  innocent 
look  of  wonder. 

"  Do  you  think  so  ? "  he  asked,  with  a  sly  wink  and 
chuckle. 

"  Good  Lord ! "  I  cried  out,  as  if  the  idea  had  just 
come  to  me.  "  They're  not —  " 


'  'D'yer  see  this?' 

"At  the  same  time  he  pulled  out  of  his  pocket,  a  lot  of  '  queer' 
or  counterfeit  bills." — Page  34. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  35 

"  Ya-as !  They  ar' — but  don't  make  si  eh  a  row 
about  seeing  them." 

As  lie  said  this,  lie  glanced  around  as  if  he  had  been 
afraid  somebody  might  have  been  within  earshot  of  us. 

"  I  only  wish  I  could  get  hold  of  sonic  of  the  blamed 

Btllff." 

"  If  yer  do,"  replied  lie,  "  I'll  introduce  yer  to  them 
as  makes  it." 

"  Will  you— re-eelly,  do  that  I " 

"  Ya-as!  young  fellow,  I  will." 

Accordingly,  we  started  on  the  day  after  our  return 
down  the  river,  and  having  passed  Dutchman's  Rapids, 
entered  upon  what  is  called  the  jaws  of  the  Little  Dalls, 
at  the  Shingle.  Thence,  going  by  the  Devil's  Elbow 
and  the  Sag  safely  enough,  we  came  out  at  the  foot  of 
the  Dalls  proper.  Here  my  companion  showed  me  the 
entrance  to  the  cave  in  which  the  work  of  the  gang  was 
carried  on. 

He  then  told  me  I  would  have  to  wait  at  Portage 
City,  until  he  could  see  his  fellows  in  the  business  and 
obtain  their  permission  to  introduce  a  new  recruit  to 
them.  Otherwise,  it  might  be  dangerous. 

Afterwards,  he  himself  returned  to  the  neighborhood 
of  the  Sag. 

While  remaining  at  Portage,  I  met  portions  of  my 
party,  to  whom  I  communicated  the  success  I  had  met 
with.  After  talking  the  matter  over  with  them,  it  was 
suggested  by  me  that  I  should  enter  into  the  drinking- 
saloon  business,  which  would  not  only  afford  me  an  ap 
parent  opportunity  for  disposing  of  the  false  money, 
but  render  it  easy  for  me  to  bring  my  companions  in 
contact  with  the  counterfeiters.  This  was  agreed  upon, 
and  when  the  pilot  returned,  I  suggested  it  to  him.  He 


36  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

literally  jumped  at  the  idea,  and  ostensibly  helped  me  in. 
hunting  up  a  location  for  my  debut  in  rum-selling,  as 
well  as  vouching  for  me  most  strongly  to  the  individual 
from  whom  I  hired  it.  The  rascal  was  well  known  in 
the  place. 

The  whole  of  the  time  since  I  had  arrived  in  Portage 
City,  I  was  in  constant  correspondence  with  Pinkerton, 
who  thoroughly  approved  of  every  step  I  was  taking, 
and  gave  me  to  understand  he  would  be  ready  at  any 
moment  to  join  me. 

Well !  my  saloon  was  opened,  and  liquor-drinking  was 
in  full  blast  in  it.  The  pilot  was  as  good  as  his  word. 
At  different  times,  he  brought  down  to  rne  most  of  his 
accomplices,  or  rather  of  his  employers,  and  I  quickly 
became  a  sort  of  licensed  favorite  with  them.  Of  course, 
if  I  had  been  detected  in  "shoving  the  queer,"  and 
found  myself  within  the  grasp  of  the  law,  they  wouldn't 
have  cared  one  red  cent,  but  while  I  apparently  bought 
their  bogus  notes,  I  was  the  best  of  fellows  living.  In 
the  meantime,  I  had  gradually  introduced  them  to  most 
of  my  companions,  some  of  whom  also  took  portion  of 
their  spurious  money,  paying  for  it  in  good  cash.  It  must 
be  admitted  that  the  whole  of  the  gang  were  capital 
judges  of  the  genuineness  of  any  of,  or  all,  the  currency 
of  the  various  States.  "  Wild-cat "  notes  nothing  could 
induce  them  to  take  in  exchange,  even  for  any  of  their 
own  shinplasters. 

Shortly  after  this,  I  found  that  the  counterfeiters  were 
to  have  a  full  meeting  in  the  cave,  which  I  had  now 
several  times  visited.  It  was,  I  had  reason  to  believe 
from  what  the  pilot  told  me,  for  the  purpose  of  dividing 
the  spoils  of  the  last  month,  whkjh  had  been,  so  he 
hinted  to  me,  unusually  large. 


BUCKSKIN    MOST5.  37 

My  chief  was  immediately  notified. 

Very  soon  after,  he  joined  me,  with  the  United  States 
Marshal,  and  made  arrangements  with  the  sheriff  and 
city  marshal  to  pounce  upon  the  whole  gang. 

I  say,  he  joined  me.  But  this  is  scarcely  the  case,  as 
he  only  saw  me  once  previously  to  the  night  on  which  I 
knew  they  were  to  meet  at  the  cave. 

Arrangements,  under  his  shrewd  supervision,  were 
capitally  made.  The  cave  had  two  entrances,  one  at  the 
side  of  it,  some  considerable  distance  from  the  main 
one.  A  part  of  his  men,  with  a  section  of  the  local  po 
lice,  under  the  United  States  and  city  marshals,  were 
to  be  placed  there  to  prevent  any  chance  of  escape. 
Jlimself  and  the  sheriff  of  Portage  were  to  be  con 
ducted  by  me  to  the  main  entrance.  It  would  be  need 
less  to  say,  that  as  a  desperate  resistance  to  us  was  within 
the  probable  chances,  every  man  in  either  party  was 
well  armed.  Our  suspicions  respecting  this  were  not, 
however,  destined  to  be  realized.  Pinkerton's  precau 
tionary  measures  had  been  too  well  taken.  When  we 
were  discovered,  a  rush  had  been  made  for  the  other  en 
trance.  Here,  they  found  out  that  they  had  been  com 
pletely  trapped. 

Then,  rightly  believing  that  the  party  at  the  main  en 
trance  was  the  principal  one,  they  returned,  and  had  a 
parley  with  the  sheriff  and  Pinkerton,  or  rather  with  the 
last,  ultimately  corning  out  and  surrendering. 

After  having  been  handcuffed,  and  placed  in  the 
boats,  part  of  onr  men  were  left  in  the  cave  to  secure 
the  spoils,  while  the  rest  of  us  returned  with  our  prison 
ers  to  Portage.  It  was  one  of  the  largest  hauls  of  coun 
terfeiters,  with  their  implements  of  trade  and  spurious 
money,  as  well  as  a  fair  amount  of  good  paper,  which 


3  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

had  up  to  that  time  ever  been  made  in  the  West,  and 
redounded  very  much  to  the  credit  of  my  chief,  as  well 
as  myself — the  last,  mainly  on  account  of  the  warm 
way  in  which  he  was  pleased  to  compliment  the  share  I 
had  taken  in  it.  Most  certainly  it  resulted  in  the  break 
ing  up  of  the  gang  at  that  time  known  as  the  Guy  Fox 
band,  whose  depredations  had  extended  for  several  years 
from  the  Lakes  to  the  Gulf.  It  had  been  the  terror  of 
the  country,  as  it  had  resorted  to  every  species  of  crime 
with  the  view  of  furthering  their  schemes.  In  due  time 
they  were  all  convicted  and  sent  for  various  terms  to  the 
Penitentiary.  All  of  them  had  the  satisfaction  of  serv 
ing  out  their  time,  with  one  solitary  exception.  This 
was  my  friend  the  pilot  of  the  raft,  whose  wish  to  make 
me  a  tool  had  led  to  their  apprehension. 

He  was  not,  in  every  respect,  a  bad  fellow,  and  his 
look  of  bewildered  astonishment  when,  with  the  hand 
cuffs  on  his  hands,  he  saw  me  on  the  boat  with  Pinker- 
ton,  was  so  miserably  pitiable,  that  I  could  not  help  feel 
ing  some  tenderness  towards  him. 

In  the  fulness  of  my  heart,  I  spoke  to  my  chief  about 
him  on  the  same  night  after  our  return  to  Portage. 

"I  will  see  about  it,  Mose,"  he  replied,  with  a  dry 
smile.  "But,  if  you  had  as  long  an  experience  as  I 
have,  you  would  know  how  useless  mercy  would  be  to 
him.  What  is  in  the  bone  will  out  in  the  flesh/' 

The  fellow  was  released,  upon  Pinkerton's  application, 
some  twelve  months  afterwards,  and,  as  I  have  heard, 
verified  my  chief's  appreciation  of  rascality.  It  has 
been  said  he  was  shot  by  a  stalwart  farmer,  some  three 
years  afterwards,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Dubuque, 
Iowa,  in  consequence  of  an  attempt  at  highway  robbery. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSK.  39 

This  fact,  however,  I  am  unable  to  verify.  So,  let  my 
readers  charitably  hope,  the  lesson  he  had  received  bore 
the  good  fruit  of  turning  him  again  into  the  paths  of 
honesty. 


CHAPTER  III. 

UNDER  THE  SHADOW  OP  MY  OWN  VINE  AND  FIG-TREE — Too 
MUCH  SYMPATHY — AGAIN  IN  THE  THEATRE — MY  FIRST  TRIP 
ACROSS  THE  PLAINS— A  FlDDLE  AS  A  SENSATION — THE  FREE 
FIGHT— MY  FIRST  LESSON  IN  SWIMMING — WANTED,  A  NEW 
Bow — JUDGMENT  ON  A  WHISKEY-DRINKER— THE  THIRD 
TIME— OUT  HE  GOES— A  STAMPEDE — GROWING  INTO  FAVOR 
— THE  HORSE-THIEVES— MILITARY  JUDGMENT. 

FOR  a  brief  time,  I  again  returned  to  my  father,  who 
had  been  unwilling  that  I  should  rejoin  Pinkerton.  He 
could  stand  my  being  deputy-sheriff  under  his  own  eye, 
but  he  did  not  relish  my  becoming  a  regular  detective. 

However,  his  term  of  office  as  sheriff  was  now  expired, 
and  I  told  him : 

"  I  must  do  something." 

"  So  you  shall,"  he  replied.  "  There  is  a  nice  little 
farm  at  some  fifteen  miles  distant.  I  will  buy  it  for 
you." 

I  had  never  yet  resided  under  what  Scripture  calls 
"  the  shadow  of  my  own  vine  and  fig-tree."  The  idea 
struck  me  in  a  favorable  light,  and  I  cordially  accepted 
his  offer,  although  somewhat  doubting  my  capacity  in 
an  agricultural  line. 

However,  the  die  was  cast,  and  in  a  few  weeks  I  had 
settled  down  in  the  original  occupation  of  our  common 
parent,  having  at  the  same  time  become  a  married  man. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  from  the  very  start  I  found 
wedlock  infinitely  more  agreeable  than  tilling  the  soil. 

My  previous  almost  nomadic  style  of  existence  had 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  4:1 

to  a  great  measure  incapacitated  me  for  this  weari 
somely  primitive  style  of  life.  It  was  of  no  use  trying 
to  relish  it.  Luckily,  there  are  all  sorts  of  tempera 
ments  in  this  world,  or  what  would  humanity  do  for 
wheat,  corn,  and  garden-stuff.  My  nature  was  decidedly 
not  adapted  to  raising  them. 

My  wrife  saw  my  utter  incapability  as  a  farmer.  She 
was  a  good  little  soul,  and  frequently  condoled  with  me 
on  it. 

This  was  the  very  worst  thing,  possibly,  that  she  could 
have  done.  It  added  edge  to  my  disgust  with  it.  Night 
after  night,  when  the  day's  work  was  over,  were  spent 
by  me  in  querulously  grumbling,  and  by  her  in  consol 
ing  my  discontent  at  my  condition  in  life. 

At  length  the  farming  season  ended,  and  then  my 
detestation  of  agriculture  was  doomed  to  be  inconceiva 
bly  heightened. 

While  I  had  out-of-door  occupation,  I  could  stand 
its  regular  monotony.  Without  it,  what  was  there  for 
me  to  do  ?  I  could  but  wander  round  the  yard,  and 
look  at  my  pigs,  fodder  my  cattle,  take  a  stroll  to  the 
next  farm,  some  three  miles  away,  return  to  my  little 
wife,  expect  her  to  console  me,  and  then  retire  to  bed, 
with  the  expectation  of  awaking  to  another  day  of  the 
same  humdrum  existence. 

My  life  had  a  necessity  for  positive  activity. 

The  good  little  soul  to  whom  I  was  married  saw  this ; 
possibly  too  late.  However  this  was,  it  came  about 
that,  with  her  full  consent,  although  not  without  many 
tears  on  her  part,  and  a  considerable  quantity  of  gloomy 
sorrow  on  mine,  I  left  her  at  home,  and  struck  out  once 
more  into  the  world. 

It  would  be  useless  to  narrate  every  incident  of  this 


42  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

winter,  but  in  the  spring  of  1S55  I  brought  up  at  St. 
Joseph,  Missouri. 

Here,  Maggie  Mitchell  was  at  this  period  playing  as 
a  "  star,"  and  to  her  I  was  indebted  for  a  short  engage 
ment  in  the  Theatre.  It  lasted  for  six  weeks.  When 
it  came  to  a  conclusion,  I  determined  upon  visiting 
California,  at  that  time  the  Ophir  and  Golconda  of  the 
further  side  of  this  continent.  However,  it  was  no  use 
starting  with  the  small  means  I  then  had,  unless  some 
positive  manner  of  living  in  San  Francisco,  at  my  first 
arrival  there,  was  secured.  Therefore,  I  telegraphed  to 
Thomas  McGuire,  of  McGuire's  Opera  House,  who  was 
about  to  open  the  New  Metropolitan  Theatre.  In  reply, 
he  offered  me  an  engagement  for  the  September  follow 
ing.  It  was  a  long  time  to  wait,  but  luckily  I  had  re 
cently  become  acquainted  with  John  Crim,  of  the  firm 
of  Crim,  Ebright  and  Coutts,  who  was  organizing  a  party 
to  cross  the  Plains. 

lie  spoke  to  me  about  joining  them,  and  in  almost 
less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  pen  these  few  lines,  I  had 
arranged  to  accompany  him. 

It  was  upon  the  6th  of  May,  after  having  written  a 
long  and  lovingly  explanatory  letter  to  my  wife,  I  started 
from  St.  Joseph. 

There  were  three  hundred  and  seventy -five  head  of 
horses,  and  seventy-five  men,  all  thoroughly  armed  and 
equipped.  Each  of  them  was  furnished  with  a  Sharp's 
carbine  with  sabre-bayonet,  and  a  revolver.  It  was  al 
most  like  the  moving  of  a  little  army.  The  organiza 
tion  had  been  made  in  thorough  military  style,  and  per 
haps  with  even  more  discipline,  being  under  the  com 
mand  of  Captain  Crim  himself. 

Naturally,  I  was  almost  a  total  stranger  to  all  of  them 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  43 

except  our  leader,  but  I  soon  began  to  form  acquaint 
ances,  and  in  a  few  days  became  more  especially  linked 
in  friendship  with  Dave  Ilorner,  tlie  brother  to  Puss 
Homer,  and  the  blacksmith  of  the  party.  The  last  was 
a  sturdy  Englishman,  rejoicing  in  the  sobriquet,  by 
which  he  was  commonly  known  amongst  us,  of  Brighton 
Bill. 

Our  first  halting-place  was  opposite  Marysville,  on  the 
Big  Blue  River. 

It  then  consisted  of  some  four  or  five  rough  stone 
houses,  covered  with  dirt,  half  a  dozen  adobe  huts,  as  I 
have  since  learnt  to  call  them,  and  a  gambling  hell, 
specially  designed  to  pigeon  emigrants  in  those  delight 
ful  games  known  as  Three-card  Monte,  the  Strap  Game, 
and  others  of  an  equally  holy  and  pleasant  character. 
This  building,  only  of  one  story,  was  also  the  station  at 
which  the  Pony  Express  changed  horses. 

After  supper,  Brighton  Bill,  Ilorner,  and  Pigeon — thus 
denominated  because  his  outside  attire  was  a  swallow- 
tailed  coat — strolled  through  Marysville.  It  was  the  first 
settlement  we  had  struck  since  leaving  St.  Joseph,  and 
we  were  curious  about  the  customs,  habits,  and  style  of 
living  of  the  place.  In  any  case,  I  was  so  decidedly. 

Dave  had  brought  his  violin  with  him.  He  was  a 
capital  fiddler,  and  in  travelling  across  the  plains,  it  is 
not  always  necessary  to  leave  our  business  behind  us. 
Dave  certainly  carried  the  means  of  displa}7ing  his  ac 
complishment  with  him. 

That  fiddle  created  a  veritable  sensation.  It  might 
have  been  imagined  that  none  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Marysville  had  ever  seen  a  fiddle  before.  His  music 
was  taken  in  exchange  for  whiskey,  cigars,  and  anything 
else  we  wanted.  Indeed.  I  began  to  believe  that  Cap- 


44:  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

tain  Grim  might  run  the  risk  of  losing  Horner  as  a 
member  of  the  party.  It  almost  seemed  to  me,  as  if,  in 
a  clay  or  two,  Dave  might  have  become  the  owner  of  the 
whole  settlement.  However,  in  supposing  this,  I  had 
not  precisely  calculated  the  full  effects  of  temper  and 
whiskey  upon  Brighton  Bill.  He  began  to  feel  the  ef 
fects  of  the  latter  and  by  degrees  lost  the  former.  A 
somewhat  scurrilously  jocose  allusion  to  his  nationality 
was  made  by  one  of  the  natives.  The  indignant  Briton 
no  sooner  heard  it,  than  he  struck  out,  right  from  the 
shoulder,  in  true  Johnny  Bull  fashion.  The  offending 
native  went  down  on  the  sandy  soil  of  the  High  Street 
of  Marys ville  as  if  he  had  been  projected  by  a  catapult. 

Some  few  rows  I  had  seen  in  my  life  before  this,  but 
never  such  a  free  fight  as  followed. 

The  whole  of  the  male  portion  of  the  settlement  (by 
the  bye,  it  was  nearly  all  of  it)  joined  in  the  metee. 

Had  it  not  been  for  the  assistance  of  many  of  our 
companions,  who  had  also  amused  themselves  with  an  ex 
ploring  tour  through  Marysville,  we  might  have  got  the 
worst  of  it.  Luckily,  they  took  a  hand  in  the  game, 
which  saved  us.  Pistol-shots  were,  however,  freely  in 
terchanged,  and  an  individual  was  dropped,  who  had  just 
drawn  a  bead  upon  Bill,  with  a  bullet  behind  his  ear. 

After  this,  we  retreated  in  as  good  order  as  we  could, 
towards  the  river  which  lay  between  us  and  the  spot 
where  our  camp  was  pitched. 

The  darkness  of  night  had,  however,  by  this  time, 
fallen  upon  us,  and  being  strangers,  our  party  managed 
to  become  separated.  Horner  and  myself  kept  together, 
but  when  we  reached  the  stream,  it  was  at  a  different 
portion  of  it  from  that  where  the  skiff  lay  that  had  borne 
us  over.  We  knew  not  which  side  to  turn. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  45 

While  standing  there,  we  heard  the  sound  of  oars;  or, 
more  properly,  of  a  means  of  propulsion  bearing  an 
equal  consanguinity  to  oars  and  paddles.  They  were  pe 
culiar  to  the  Plains  at  that  time.  What  was  to  be  done  ? 
If  we  had  shouted  to  our  friends,  we  should  have  dis 
closed  our  whereabouts  to  our  enemies. 

Homer,  however,  was  a  man  of  educational  resource, 
and  volunteered  to  swim  across  and  return  with  the  skiff 
for  me,  as  I  was  unable  to  accompany  him. 

It  may  be  imagined  I  felt  some  repugnance  at  being 
left  to  the  mercy  of  Marys ville,  if  it  should  chance  to 
lind  me.  Searching  around,  I  stumbled  over  something, 
which,  on  examination,  I  discovered  was  an  old  "dug 
out,"  or  species  of  impromptu  ark.  To  this  I  at  once 
determined  upon  committing  myself  and  my  fortunes, 
with  a  broad  piece  of  board  which  I  found  at  some  lit 
tle  distance.  This  might  serve  as  a  paddle.  Accord 
ingly,  as  Horner  plunged  into  the  river,  I  availed  myself 
of  it.  But  the  cursed  thing  gave  me  a  lesson  I  have 
never  since  forgotten,  when  the  chance  was  given  me  to 
remember  it.  It  is  contained  in  the  old  proverbial  say 
ing,  "look  before  you  leap."  The  dug-out  had  a  hole 
in  it.  Scarcely  had  it  got  a  dozen  yards  from  the  shore, 
than  it  was  fast  filling.  In  a  few  yards  more,  it  was 
under  water ;  and  for  the  sake  of  remaining  above  its 
unpleasantly  chilly  surface,  I,  very  considerately,  let  it 
go  to — the  bottom. 

This  was  the  worst  fix  I  had  yet  found  myself  in. 

But  there  is  no  lane  without  a  turning,  although  it 
must  be  confessed  some  of  these  turnings  are  occasion 
ally  sharp  and  rough.  Thinking  my  last  moment  was 
come,  and  that  some  time  next  morning  my  unconscious 
body  might  arrive  on  shore  some  miles  lower  down  the 


46  BUCKSKIN    M08E. 

river,  to  afford  a  meal  to  the  stray  dogs  or  crows  of  this 
part  of  the  country,  I  struck  out  recklessly  in  a  battle 
for  as  much  more  of  life  as  I  could  possibly  keep. 

A  few  moments  passed.  Great  Heaven  !  I  did  not 
sink.  I  was  actually  swimming. 

"  Where  are  you,  Dave?"  I  shouted  out,  joyously. 

"  Here,  old  boy  ! "  was  the  cheery  answer. 

That  single  exclamation  settled  my  wish  for  conver 
sation  while  in  the  Big  Blue  River.  It  had  filled  my 
mouth  with  water,  and  was  very  nearly  on  the  point  of 
bringing  my  first  lesson  in  swimming  to  a  most  abrupt 
close.  So  I  kept,  iny  tongue  quiet,  until  at  length  I 
arrived  drippingly  joyous  at  the  further  side  of  the 
stream. 

Homer  was,  necessarily,  there  before  me,  and  assisted 
me  to  mount  the  bank. 

**  I  thought,  Mose,  you  told  me  you  couldn't  swim." 

"  Nor  could  I,  Dave !  You  know,  necessity  is  the 
mother  of  invention." 

"  So  it  seems,"  he  dryly  replied.  "  I  only  wish  it 
would  find  me  a  new  bow  for  my  fiddle.  The  black 
guards  smashed  that." 

"  It  was  lucky,"  I  said,  "  they  left  you  a  whole  skin." 

"  Upon  my  word !  it  was  so,"  was  his  answer. 

We  then  from  the  summit  of  the  bank  looked  round 
us,  and  saw  the  welcome  glow  of  our  smouldering 
camp-fires,  some  half  a  mile  below. 

Horner  spent  the  remainder  of  that  night,  after  our 
return,  in  attending  to  his  violin.  The  truth  is,  it 
needed  it.  I,  however,  slept  soundly,  and  was  awoke 
on  the  following  morning  at  an  early  hour  in  very  fair 
trim.  The  truth  is,  early  experience  had  taught  me 
what  the  results  of  bad  whiskey  are,  and  led  me  to 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  47 

refrain  from  an  unhealthy  indulgence  in  that  exhilarat 
ing  class  of  strong  drink.  But  few  of  our  companions 
had  been  as  prudent.  Brighton  Bill  and  Dave  more 
expressly  felt  the  full  effects  of  it ;  and  with  a  parched 
tongue,  and  a  splitting  headache,  heaped  their  fullest 
maledictions  upon  Marysville,  and  all  the  ungodly 
dwellers  in  that  location,  during  the  whole  of  that  day. 
His  cold-water  bath  on  the  preceding  night  had, 
however,  so  modified  the  effects  of  whiskey  upon 
Homer,  that  I  was  unprepared  to  find  him  so  depraved 
in  his  appetite  for  it. 

He  was  indifferent  how  he  got  it,  whether  clandes 
tinely,  to  use  the  mildest  possible  phrase,  or  not.  Hap 
pening  to  be  on  guard  one  night  at  our  camping-place, 
he  felt  this  thirst  strong  upon  him.  Not  having  the 
means  of  gratification  with  him,  he  actually  bored  a 
hole  in  one  of  the  whiskey-barrels,  and  made  free  with 
its  contents  by  means  of  a  straw.  In  the  morning  he 
was  what  politeness  would  call  "frightfully  overcome." 
In  good  old  Saxon,  he  was  drunk. 

Now  Captain  Grim  had  a  holy  horror  of  peculation 
— more  especially,  perhaps,  of  whiskey-peculation,  when 
it  was  committed  in  the  manner  Dave  had  been  guilty 
of.  Nor  in  truth  do  I  much  blame  him.  Instead  of 
boring  the  hole  near  the  top  of  the  barrel,  and  insuring 
himself  merely  sufficient,  Homer  had  bored  it  about 
one-third  down.  He  had  also  omitted  to  plug  it  up 
when  he  had  satisfied  himself.  There  was  perhaps 
some  reason  for  this,  as  when  he  had  finished  drinking 
he  might  have  failed  again  to  find  the  aperture. 

At  all  events,  when  Captain  Grim  rose  in  the  morn 
ing,  one-third  of  the  whiskey  had  dispersed  itself  over 
the  bottom  of  the  wagon  devoted  to  its  carriage,  and 


48  BUCKSKIN    MUSE. 

Horner's  guilt  was  self-evident,  putting  his  own  state 
entirely  out  of  the  question. 

A  drum-head,  or  rather  a  whiskey-barrel,  court-mar 
tial  was  immediately  called  together.  The  impenitent, 
because  scarcely  conscious,  thief  was  arraigned,  tried, 
and  found  guilty.  Sentence  was,  however,  suspended. 
This  was  partly,  because,  at  the  moment,  he  would  have 
failed  to  comprehend  its  justice.  More  so,  because  it 
was  hoped  that  when  restored  to  complete  consciousness, 
his  friends  might  have  influence  enough  with  him  to 
prevent  the  recurrence  of  so  gross  a  breach  of  the  laws 
of  social  equity.  At  first  it  appeared  it  would  have 
done  so.  But  again  he  fell  from  the  high  standard  of 
morality  on  the  Plains,  and  the  captain  had  determined 
upon  expelling  him  from  the  camp.  Brighton  Bill  and 
myself  headed  the  rest  of  the  party  in  a  strong  remon 
strance.  At  first  Grim  was  disposed  to  defy  us,  but 
finding  us  all  united  in  the  wish  to  save  the  poor  fellow, 
finally  gave  way. 

The  luckless  Dave  swore  himself  to  perennial  sobriety. 
But,  alas!  he  once  more  fell  from  grace,  in  an  emi 
grant-train.  Then  Captain  Grim  insisted  with  Spartan 
justice  on  the  rigid  execution  of  the  lately  postponed 
sentence. 

What  could  be  said  upon  his  behalf?  These  who 
had  been  willing  to  deal  kindly  with  him  upon  the 
score  of  his  fiddle,  could  find  no  word  to  urge  in  his 
favor.  Possibly,  in  their  eyes  the  liquor  he  had  been 
guilty  of  abstracting  was  of  greater  present  value,  even, 
than  his  violin.  One  only  of  us  stuck  to  him.  This  was 
a  relative,  I  believe  a  nephew,  of  our  captain. 

"  If  you  turn  Dave  out,  you  shall  turn  me,  too ; "  he 
said  pluckily. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  49 

Crim's  lips  whitened. 

"  Then,  by  the  Lord  ! "  he  said.     "  Out  you  both  go." 

And  out  both  did  go,  with  such  provisions  as  might 
be  immediately  necessary,  horses,  arms,  and  a  suf 
ficiency  of  powder  and  shot  to  last  them  until  they 
were  picked  up  by  another  train  or  scalped  by  the  In 
dians.  The  last,  however,  I  doubt,  as  although  I  never 
again  heard  of  Dave  Homer,  I  have  reason  to  believe 
his  companion  is  now  settled  in*Sacramento,  and  is  a 
prosperous  merchant  in  that  thriving  city. 

Until  we  arrived  at  Ash  Hollow,  on  the  south  side  of 
the  North  Platte,  nothing  of  any  moment  occurred. 
Here  as  we  were  camping,  a  magnificent  and  noted  bay 
horse,  called  Captain  Fisher,  took  fright  and  started  off 
at  a  furious  pace  with  a  number  of  the  stock.  In  fact, 
it  was  a  regular  stampede,  and  one  of  the  most  exciting 
sights  I  had  ever  seen,  However,  I  had  no  more  than 
the  first  moment  to  enjoy  it  in.  Action  was  a  necessity, 
and  my  old  circus-training  stood  me  in  good  stead,  to 
be  of  some  service.  I  darted  after  the  bay  with  a  speed 
that  nearly  equalled  his  own.  How  long  this  would 
have  held  out,  it  is,  of  course,  impossible  for  me  to  say. 
Something,  however,  caused  Captain  Fisher  to  swerve 
across  my  line  of  pursuit.  Leaping,  rather  than  run 
ning  after  him,  I  succeeded  in  grasping  him  by  the 
rope  attached  to  the  hackamoor  or  halter.  His  terrified 
speed  was  so  great  that  I  was  thrown  upon  the  ground 
and  dragged  by  him  for  a  considerable  distance.  But 
for  my  long  experience  as  a  boy  on  the  sawdust  of  the 
arena,  it  would  have  been  absolutely  useless  for  me  to 
have  attempted  regaining  my  feet.  How  I  escaped 
serious  bodily  injury  from  the  remainder  of  the  stam 
peded  horses,  I  never  knew.  Escape  I  however  did,  as 
3 


50  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

well  as  again  recover  a  stand  ing  or  rather  a  running 
position.  The  rest  of  the  business  was  now  compara 
tively  easy — indeed,  a  mere  matter  of  time.  Clinging 
to  the  rope,  I  compelled  him  to  slacken  his  pace,  until> 
at  last,  I  succeeded  in  grasping  the  affrighted  animal 
by  the  mane  and  vaulting  upon  his  back.  There,  I 
was  the  master,  and  he  was  not  long  in  finding  it  out. 

It  was  about  three  miles  from  our  halting-place  when 
I  succeeded  in  turning  him.  The  remainder  of  the 
stampeded  horses  followed  us.  Thoroughly  cowed  by 
his  past  fright,  and  the  certainty  that  he  had  to  do  as  I 
chose,  we  arrived  at  the  camp. 

All  my  mates  crowded  round  me  with  congratula 
tions,  and  Captain  Grim  shook  me  by  the  hand  as  I 
leapt  from  the  back  of  the  other  Captain  with  a  warmth 
that  was  at  the  least  as  effective  as  it  was  affecting.  It 
was  the  second  time  he  had  honored  me.  The  first 
occasion  was  when  I  had  entered  upon  my  service  with 
him  in  St.  Joseph.  Nor  did  his  second  grip  mean 
nothing.  It  established  me,  with  him,  from  that  hour, 
as  a  prime  favorite. 

In  the  vicinity  of  Chimney  Rock,,  we  encountered  an 
apparently  agreeable  party  of  some  half-dozen  travel 
lers,  who  applied  for  permission  to  travel  with  our  train. 
Captain  Crim  complied  with  their  request,  extending 
to  them  the  camp  privileges  on  condition  of  their  com 
plying  with  its  necessary  restrictions.  Our  new  friends 
seemed  not  only  grateful  for  his  hospitable  kindness, 
but  too  eager  to  displa}^  their  gratitude. 

They  continued  with  us  some  two  days,  without  ex 
citing  any  suspicion. 

During  the  second  night  after  their  admission  to  the 
camp,  it  happened  to  be  my  watch,  and  while  on  my 


BUCKSKIN    HOSE.  51 

rounds,  I  seemed  to  notice  a  movement  in  some  of  the 
animals  which  indicated  that  all  was  not  perfectly  as  it 
should  be.  They  did  not  seem  as  quiet  as  usual. 

Bending  closer  to  the  earth  and  gazing  along  it,  with 
my  eyes  covered  by  my  hand  from  the  glare  of  the 
camp-fires,  I  saw  some  description  of  animal,  which  I 
at  once  supposed  was  a  coyote  or  Prairie-wolf.  As  yet, 
such  an  animal  was  unknown  to  me.  To  make  assur 
ance  doubly  sure,  I  raised  my  rifle  to  my  shoulder,  and 
in  another  instant  should  have  blazed  away  at  it,  when 
it  suddenly  straightened  itself  up,  yelling  out  franti 
cally  : 

"  For  God's  sake,  don't  shoot !  " 

"  Come  in,  then,"  was  my  answer. 

As  the  fellow  gradually  sneaked  nearer  to  me,  it 
seemed  that  I  recognized  him.  And,  very  certainly, 
when  he  was  within  the  light  of  the  camp-fires,  I  did 
so.  It  was  one  of  the  party  of  .agreeable  gentlemen 
whom  our  captain  had  hospitably  permitted  to  travel 
with  us.  The  scoundrel  had  been  tampering  with  the 
fastenings  of  our  horses,  preparatory  to  stealing  them. 

Never  shall  I  forget  Captain  Crim's  look  of  unutter 
able  horror  at  the  fellow,  when  I  woke  him  up  in  his 
tent,  with  my  prisoner.  The  indignation  which  he  had 
exhibited  on  poor  Dave  Horner's  third  detection  in 
whiskey-stealing,  was  nothing  to  it. 

"  A  darned  horse-thief !  Who'd  ever  have  thought 
it!" 

"  I  assure  you,  Captain — " 

"  Hold  your  tongue,  you  infernal  rascal,  or,  by  Heaven ! 
I'll  make  short  work  of  you  and  your  companions." 

"  Let  me  explain,  my  dear  sir ! "  he  whined. 

"  Have  them  all  turned  out,  Mose  !  "  thundered  Crim. 


52  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  They  are  lucky  to  have  me  to  deal  with  them.  Any 
one  else  would  have  hanged  the  whole  lot." 

By  this  time,  the  whole  camp  was  alive,  more  espec 
ially  our  forty-eight  hour  acquaintances.  These  dis 
owned  the  culprit,  as  a  stranger  who  had  but  recently 
joined  them.  Their  defence  was,  however,  too  thin ; 
and  as  the  ominous  murmur  arose  around  them  that — 

"  Lynching  would  be  the  shortest  and  best  settlement 
of  the  matter" — 

It  was  concluded  by  them,  it  would  be  wisest  to  obey. 
This,  the  more  especially,  as  I  had  collected  some  dozen 
of  my  immediate  friends,  who  stood  ominously  close  to 
me,  with  rifles  in  hand,  and  six-shooters  very  palpably 
visible. 

In  another  ten  minutes,  they  had  all  left  the  camp. 

When  wTe  arrived  at  Fort  Laramie,  Grim  reported 
this  gang  of  marauding  horse-thieves  to  the  officer  in 
command  of  that  post.  Several  days  on  our  route  be 
yond  the  fort,  we  were  overtaken  by  the  Pony  Express, 
and  learned  that  this  very  band  had  been  captured  in 
its  immediate  vicinity.  Military  justice  is  very  prompt. 
It  may  make  an  occasional  mistake,  although  not  often. 
They  had  all  been  hung. 


CHAPTER  IY. 

CAUGHT  BY  THE  INDIANS — A  PLEASANT  BIDE — ONE  PITYING 
FACE — BENEFIT  OP  BEING  A  MASON — THE  EVIL  EYE — INDI 
AN  BEAUTY  AND  INDIAN  EATING — THE  OFFER  OF  MARRIAGE 
— DECLINING  IT,  MAKES  ME  A  FRIEND — A  SECOND  AND  MORE 
TEMPTING  OFFER— DECLINING  IT,  DOES  NOT  MAKE  ME  AN 
ENEMY — PULLING  UP  MY  STAKES  WITH  HONOR — THE  PONY 
EXPRESS— AGAIN  WITH  THE  TRAIN. 

PREVIOUS  to  our  reaching  Fort  Laramie,  we  had  been 
able  to  procure  plenty  of  fresh  meat. 

The  antelope  and  buffalo  had  almost  seemed  waiting 
for  our  rifles.  Now,  however,  we  met  with  few  or  none 
of  either  of  these,  and  the  scarcity  began  to  be  severely 
felt. 

Even  Captain  Crim  grew  more  peppery  with  us  than 
he  had  before  been,  and  Brighton  Bill  lost  his  usual 
ruddy  jollity. 

Consequently,  one  morning,  I  started  out  with  a  de 
termination  to  find  fresh  meat  or  die.  To  tell  the  truth, 
it  came  very  near  to  being  the  latter. 

As  yet,  all  the  Indians  we  had  met  with  on  the  Plains 
had  been  of  friendly  tribes,  and  at  this  time  no  danger 
was  anticipated.  I  was  already  some  six  or  seven  miles 
from  our  train,  on  the  upper  side  of  the  North  Platte, 
past  what  they  call  the  Rattlesnake  Hills,  when  I  be 
held  approaching  me  a  party  of  Indians.  At  this  time, 
I  was  unaware  what  tribe  they  were,  although  now  I 
should  pretty  readily  be  able  to  tell  that  they  were 
Cheyennes.  These  are  generally  hostile  to  the  whites, 


54  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

unless  overawed  b}r  superior  numbers.  I  necessarily 
mean,  a  proportionately  superior  number — about  one, 
perhaps,  to  three.  The  party  approached  me  in  an  ap 
parently  friendly  manner,  or  else  the  fleet  gelding  I 
was  mounted  on  might  easily  have  distanced  them. 
On  approaching  nearer,  they  requested,  in  the  usual 
Indian  manner,  for  tobacco  or  powder.  The  first,  I 
readily  enough  gave  them.  The  latter  I  was  not  in 
clined  to  part  with.  Suddenly  one  of  the  Indians 
drew  closer  to  me,  and  laid  his  hand  on  my  rifle.  I 
pulled  it  back  from  him,  and  at  the  same  moment  was 
grasped  round  the  waist  from  behind,  by  a  savage  whom 
I  had  not  previously  noticed. 

My  desperate  struggles  were  in  vain.  I  was  torn 
from  my  horse,  and  in  a  few  moments  more  found 
myself  weaponless,  with  my  arms  pinioned  behind  me, 
and  lashed  on  the  back  of  one  of  their  ponies.  The 
raw  hide-whangs  round  my  waist  were  tied  so  tightly 
as  almost  to  stop  the  circulation. 

The  animal  was  then  turned  loose,  and  followed  with 
whoop  and  yell  by  the  savages  as  if  they  had  been 
nothing  else  than  a  band  of  devils.  The  Cheyenne  who 
was  probably  their  chief  had  appropriated  my  horse. 
How  madly  I  wished  that  Charlie  would  throw  the  red 
demon  as  he  galloped  after  me,  shouting  and  whooping 
like  an  incarnate  fiend. 

In  that  mad  race,  for  at  the  moment  I  almost  fancied 
the  Indians  and  myself  were  all  lunatics  on  a  wild  race 
to  the  infernal  regions,  what  a  paroxysm  of  despairing 
thought  rushed  through  my  mind.  AVus  I  to  go  out  of 
life  something  like  the  dying  snuff  of  a  caudle,  without 
one  free  blow  in  a  square  fight  ?  And  these  were  the 
Indians  I  had  read  of  as  a  boy,  these  cowardly,  sneaking 


BUCKSKIN   HOSE.  55 

red  curs,  who  had  not  dared  to  give  me  a  chance  for  my 
life.  Great  God  !  Where  was  Brighton  Bill  and  my 
other  companions  ?  What  would  Captain  Grim  say  if 
he  ever  heard  of  this  ?  Then  I  thought  of  my  father, 
Pinkerton,  Maggie  Mitchell ;  and,  as  my  wife's  face  rose 
on  my  vision — my  good  little  wife,  I  could  or  would 
think  no  more.  All  became  momentarily  a  blank. 
Again,  however,  I  returned  to  my  senses.  I  heard  the 
whooping  yell  of  the  red  devil  who  was  astride  of  my 
gelding,  Charlie,  and  I  cursed  him  in  good  round  Saxon, 
as  if  he  could  understand  me. 

But  what  is  the  use  of  dwelling  upon  this.  After  a 
ride  of  some  two  hours  and  a  half,  in  a  fashion  I  had 
never  expected  to  attempt,  my  captors  came  in  sight  of 
an  Indian  village. 

Here  I  was  cut  loose  from  the  pony  upon  which  I 
had  performed  the  most  painful  feat  of  horsemanship  I 
had  ever  attempted,  and  dragged  instead  of  led  into  the 
presence  of  the  chief  of  the  tribe.  All  the  inhabitants 
of  the  village  surrounded  me.  Squaws,  old  and  young, 
papooses  of  either  sex,  and  all  the  components  of  an 
Indian  mob,  were  crowding  around  the  white  captive. 

One  only  face  I  saw  which  displayed  anything  like 
pity.  It  was  that  of  an  Indian  girl  of  some  sixteen  years. 
Whether  it  was  pretty  or  ugly,  I  knew  not.  I  only  felt 
that  I  saw  sorrow  in  her  large  and  star-like  eyes,  as  they 
gazed  upon  me. 

Curiously  enough,  they  gave  me  a  sensation  of  hope. 
The  moment  before  I  had  been  madly  desiring  that  the 
drama  of  life,  with  me,  might  come  to  an  end.  Now,  I 
began  to  think  and  weigh  my  chances,  which,  to  own 
up,  at  the  present  moment  appeared  slim  enough  for 
safety. 


56  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

My  hands  and  arms  seemed  almost  dead,  and  some 
minutes  elapsed  before  they  recovered* the  consciousness 
of  life.  Looking  in  the  face  of  the  chief,  I  saw  that  he 
was  an  old  man.  As  in  great  age  it  not  unfrequently 
happens,  his  face  had  regained  somewhat  of  the  kindli 
ness  of  youth.  At  any  rate  it  lacked  the  repulsive  char 
acter  which  marked  that  of  my  captor.  Suddenly,  it 
seemed  to  me — was  I  dreaming  ?  No  !  This  time,  I 
was  certain  of  it.  He  had  made  the  Masonic  sign  of 
distress.  The  girl's  sympathetic  glance  had  been  pal 
pably  an  omen  of  good. 

Trembling  with  agitation  I  responded. 

What  immediately  followed  I  am  unable  to  recall. 
Indeed,  I  doubt  whether  at  the  time  I  was  thoroughly 
conscious  of  it. 

When  I  undoubtedly  had  fully  recovered  my  presence 
of  mind,  I  found  that  matters  had  completely  changed 
for  me.  The  death  at  the  stake,  which  had  seemed  to 
be  my  destiny,  had  faded  from  my  senses.  The  red 
devils  almost  seemed  to  have  been  transmuted  into  cop 
per-colored  angels.  I  was  seated  on  a  buffalo-robe,  and 
some  of  the  elder  squaws  were  bathing  my  swollen 
limbs  with  cooling  lotions,  and  looking — gratitude  was 
almost  compelling  me  to  say  what  literal  truth  cannot. 
They  certainly  did  not  look  in  any  wise  amiable  or 
handsome. 

While  this  was  going  on,  a  tall  and  splendidly  formed 
specimen  of  the  red  man  entered  the  hut.  He  was 
dressed  in  a  robe  or  tunic,  magnificently  embroidered 
with  shells  and  beads.  He  had  evidently  been  sent  for 
by  the  chief,  as  I  soon  discovered,  because  he  was  able 
to  speak  English.  The  only  blemish  in  his  personal  ap 
pearance  was  a  sort  of  dip  in  his  right  eyebrow,  which 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  57 

partially  closed  the  organ  beneath.  White  supersti 
tion  might  possibly  have  gifted  him  with  the  evil  eye. 
The  Indian  name  he  bore  somewhat  corresponded  with 
this,  as  he  was  called  Par-a-wau,  or  "  The  Warning  Devil." 

First,  addressing  the  chief  (I  afterwards  found  this 
was  Old  Spotted  Tail)  in  their  own  tongue,  he  received 
an  answer. 

Then  turning  to  me,  he  extended  his  hand  and  gave 
me  the  Masonic  grip.  After  this,  he  seated  himself  be 
side  me,  and  addressed  me  in  my  own  tongue,  asking 
how  I  came  upon  the  hunting-grounds  of  the  Cheyenncs, 
where  I  was  from,  and  whither  I  was  going  ?  When  he 
had  received  my  answers  and  repeated  them  to  the 
chief  in  the  tongue  of  their  tribe,  he  next  began  to  in 
quire  very  minutely  about  Masonry  among  the  pale 
faces.  In  subsequent  conversations  with  him,  for  in  the 
present  case  I  had  only  to  reply,  I  found  that  the  In 
dians  had  first  been  initiated  in  its  mysteries  by  the 
agents  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company.  Neither  had  it 
been  much  carried  beyond  the  northern  and  western 
tribes.  This  was  learnt  from  Par-a-wau,  when  I  began 
to  feel  perfectly  at  ease  with  him. 

At  this  time  I  was  merely  a  captive,  although  I  had, 
from  the  mere  chance  of  Old  Spotted  Tail's  apprecia 
tion  of  my  personal  appearance,  escaped  the  risk  of  no 
longer  being  one,  by  the  most  speedy  means  of  escape 
from  life  my  red  acquaintances  could  have  devised  for 
me,  consistently  with  their  own  amusement.  Be  it  re 
membered,  in  stating  this  fact,  individual  vanity  bears 
no  part — the  Indian  idea  of  comeliness  being  very  much 
the  reverse,  in  general,  of  the  white  man's  idea  of  that 
desirable  qualification. 

After  his  examination  of  me  had  been  brought  to  an 
3* 


58  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

end,  he  made  an  oration  of  some  length  to  the  aged 
Cheyenne  chief.  He  had  risen  to  his  feet  as  he  did  so, 
and  the  grace  of  his  movements,  with  his  full  and  roll- 
ingly  sonorous  voice,  might  have  done  credit  to  the  best 
of  our  own  orators.  Indeed,  so  completely  did  his  gest 
ure  translate  his  speech,  that  I  could  almost  follow 
every  word  of  the  appeal  he  was  making  for  me.  He 
was  evidently  pleading  for  my  pardon.  This  I  feel  I 
should  have  received,  if  I  am  sufficiently  a  judge  of 
human  features  to  have  translated  the  benign  savage- 
ness  of  Old  Spotted  Tail's  countenance.  But  there  are 
always  two  sides  to  a  question,  and  the  young  chief,  who 
had  appropriated  not  only  myself  but  my  gelding, 
Charlie,  now  put  in  for  a  long  talk.  I  could  swear  he 
was  not  half  as  eloquent  as  Far-a-wau.  However,  what 
he  said  in  a  harsh  voice,  and  with  a  large  amount  of 
what  might  be  called  temperate  wrath,  settled  the  ques 
tion  in  discussion.  The  elders  of  the  tribe  gave  him, 
twice  or  thrice,  that  discordant  grunt  of  acquiescence 
which  Fenimore  Cooper,  the  modern  writer,  has  trans 
lated  more  musically  as — 

"  Ugh ! " 

Consequently  Old  Spotted  Tail  pronounced  a  few 
words,  and  my  red  lawyer — so  I  began  to  consider 
Warning  Devil,  although  I  had  been  unable  to  fee  him 
— turning  to  me,  said  in  English: 

"Will  my  brother  come  with  Par-a-wau  to  his  dwell- 
ing?" 

Of  course  I  would,  because  I  must.  How,  indeed, 
could  I  do  otherwise  ?  So  I  followed  him.  The  fact 
is,  I  had  begun  to  entertain  a  certain  degree  of  liking 
for  the  chief  with  the  evil  eye.  He  had  befriended 
me.  If  my  Cheyenne  captivity  had  been  a  long  one,  I 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  59 

scarcely  doubt  that  this  liking  would  have  ripened. 
However,  I  had  now  to  accompany  him.  Let  my  read 
ers  conceive  how  great  was  my  astonishment  when  I 
entered  his  hut  after  him,  to  find  my  first  glance  riveted 
by  his  daughter. 

She  was  the  Indian  maiden  whose  look  of  sympa 
thizing  pity  had,  some  two  hours  previously,  called  back 
my  numbed  senses  to  new  life  and  hope. 

"  Will  Clo-ke-ta  provide  my  brother  food  ? " 

She  too,  then,  spoke,  or  at  any  rate  comprehended, 
my  language,  for  she  made  no  reply,  but  began  to  busy 
herself  in  preparing  an  Indian  meal.  During  the  time 
which  elapsed  before  it  was  ready,  I  was  able  in  a  most 
satisfactory  manner  to  take  an  inventory  of  her  personal 
attractions.  These  I  shall,  however,  refrain  from  in 
flicting  upon  my  readers.  Let  it  be  sufficient  to  say  that 
she  was  one  of  the  most  beautiful  children  of  the  red 
man  (if  not  the  only  really  beautiful  one)  I  had  ever  seen. 

Perhaps  it  was  well  for  me,  that  while  I  was  watch 
ing  her  every  supple  and  graceful  movement,  the 
thought  of  the  dear  little  wife  who  was  waiting  for  me 
in  the  far  East,  appealed  to  my  love  for  her. 

Otherwise,  it  may  have  been  possible  that  I  might 
have  forgotten  civilization  forever.  The  nomadic  life 
had  always  great  attractions  for  me.  Where  could  I 
more  thoroughly  have  indulged  in  it,  than  as  the  son. 
in-law  of  Warning  Devil,  and  the  owner  of  such  a 

c5  ' 

charming  squaw  as  Clo-ke-ta  might  have  proved  to  me  ? 
However,  this  was  a  wrong,  as  well  as  not  altogether 
agreeable,  reflection. 

Turning  my  head  with  something  like  a  sigh  on  my 
lips  to  Par-a-wau,  I  saw  that  his  one  unhidden  eye  was 
fixed  steadily  upon  me. 


60  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  My  brother  is  sad,"  he  said.  "  But  the  trees  are  not 
always  green.  He  must  wait  in  peace  until  they  once 
more  bud." 

He  had  scarcely  interpreted  the  meaning  of  my  sigh. 
Yet  his  poetical  words  (whatever  nonsense  may  be  prated 
about  them  by  novelists,  such  Indians  as  I  have  met 
with  rarely  display  any  trace  of  poetical  feeling)  brought 
me  thoroughly  back  to  my  present  position,  and  I  asked 
him  : 

"  How  long  I  should  have  to  remain  a  captive  with 
the  Cheyenries?" 

This  he  was  unable  to  say,  but  he  informed  me  Old 
Spotted  Tail  had  granted  me  the  freedom  of  the  village, 
although  with  the  precaution  that  an  Indian  guard  should 
accompany  me  whenever  Par-a-wau  could  not. 

Clo-ke-ta  now  had  the  meal  prepared,  which  was  a 
very  satisfactory  spread  for  an  appetite  which  had  been 
unattended  to  since  the  early  hour  in  which  I  left  Cap 
tain  Crim's  camp.  The  jerked  antelope  and  the  roasted 
maize  were  in  truth  excellent,  and  if  I  only  had  been 
offered  a  horn  of  whiskey  to  wash  it  down  with,  I  might 
not  altogether  have  regretted  the  dinner  I  had  lost. 
This,  especially  when  I  now  remember  the  bright  eyes 
and  raven  hair  of  her  who  attended  to  the  need  of  my 
inner  man. 

The  fancy,  which  Old  Spotted  Tail  had  evidently  taken 
for  me,  was  destined  to  exhibit  itself  in  true  Indian 
fashion. 

He  offered  me  one  of  his  own  daughters  in  marriage. 

But  I  was  not  educated  in  Mormonism ;  and  even 
had  I  been,  it  may  be  questionable,  while  I  daily  saw 
Clo-ke-ta,  whether  El-eu-e-na,  which  was  the  name  of 
the  chief's  daughter,  would  have  had  any  attractions  for 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  61 

me.  She  was  not  particularly  interesting  in  appearance. 
Whether  she  had  any  fancy  for  my  luckless  self  or  not, 
it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to  say.  An  Indian  girl's 
affections  do  not  count  for  much  in  the  eyes  of  their 
fathers.  In  spite  of  this,  I  most  respectfully  declined 
the  alluring  offer,  through  Par-a-wau,  with,  as  he  after 
wards  informed  me,  the  most  profound  expression  of 
thankfulness  for  the  undeserved  honor  Old  Spotted  Tail 
had  done  me. 

This  seemed  to  me,  as  I  listened  without  understand 
ing,  to  greatly  gratify  the  chief  who  had  captured  me, 
and  led  to  a  result  that  was  infinitely  more  gratifying  to 
myself,  as  he  aspired  to  the  honor  of  registering  himself 
as  one  of  Old  Spotted  Tail's  sons-in-law. 

On  the  same  evening,  however,  I  was  destined  to  a 
really  far  greater  temptation.  It  was  after  the  evening 
meal,  and  I  was  seated  near  Par-a-wau.  His  child  was 
putting  away  the  wijlow  platters  and  other  means  of 
serving  up  and  disposing  of  the  food  she  had,  as  cus 
tomary,  prepared.  While  she  was  attending  to  her  do 
mestic  duties,  Warning  Devil,  without  any  warning, 
addressed  me. 

"  My  brother  has  keen  eyes." 

"  They  are  sharp  enough  at  times,  but  they  could  not 
keep  me  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Cheyennes." 

"  He  knows  that  El-eu-e-na  is  not  fair  to  look  on."  I 
could  not  help  laughing  as  he  said  this.  "  Nor  would 
she  make  a  good  squaw.  She  could  not  prepare  the 
buffalo  or  the  antelope,  nor  clean  my  brother's  rifle,  nor 
embroider  his  moccasins,  as  a  great  chief  needs  that 
she  should."  What  the  deuce  was  he  coming  to? 
I  was  not  doomed  to  wait  long,  for  after  a  pause  he 
addressed  me  this  question  in  an  affirmative  manner, 


b2  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

-vlrieli  I  at  once  understood.  "My  brother  has  seen 
31o-ke-te  ? " 

"Yes!" 

"  And  what  does  he  think  of  her  ? " 

For  my  life,  I  could  not  have  helped  casting  a  swift 
glance  at  the  Indian  girl.  She  was  standing  near  us, 
with  her  eyes  veiled  by  their  brown  lids,  and  a  crimson 
blush  glowing  through  her  dusky  skin,  over  her  cheeks, 
forehead,  neck,  and  all  of  the  upper  portion  of  her 
person  which  was  exposed.  So  fierily  red  was  this 
flush,  I  could  not  help  seeing  it  even  in  the  gathering 
gloom. 

"  Cannot  my  father  see  with  his  own  eyes,"  I  replied. 
"  She  is  as  fair  as  the  young  red  morning." 

This  was  said  by  me  in  a  grave  and  reserved  tone, 
which  among  men  of  my  own  race  would  have  precluded 
the  continuance  of  the  parent  in  what  I  felt  he  had  been 
about  to  say.  But  I  had  not  counted  truly  upon  the 
Indian  nature.  My  present  gravity  was  the  exact  re 
production  of  his  own.  It  was  so  unlike  my  usual  man 
ner,  that  he  evidently  supposed  I  had  taken  the  matter 
he  was  about  to  propose  into  serious  consideration.  He 
consequently  again  spoke. 

"  If  my  brother  will  take  Clo-ke-ta  as  his  squaw,  he 
shall  be  to  Par-a-wau  as  a  son,  in  place  of  the  young 
warrior  who  is  dead.  He  knows,  for  he  has  seen  what 
Clo-ke-ta  can  do  for  her  father's  friend.  She  will  do 
more  for  him  who  marries  her.  Shall  it  be  as  Par-a-wau 
Bays?" 

It  must  frankly  be  admitted  that  for  one  moment  the 
loveliness  of  the  face  I  had  just  seen,  and  which  I  dared 
not  again  glance  at,  made  me  waver.  Then,  the  mem 
ory  of  my  wife  and  my  own  actual  father  rushed  across 


\ 


"Looking  up,  1  told  the  uobie  savage,  tor  I  have  the  right  to  call 
Mm  noble,  all.  "—.?%<?  63. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  63 

me  with  passionate  force,  and  I  spoke.  1  was  no  longer 
a  coward. 

Looking  up,  I  told  the  noble  savage — for  I  have  the 
right  to  call  him  noble — all.  I  told  him  that  I  was  al 
ready  married,  and  had  my  father  still  living  ;  that  if  I 
were  to  do  what  he  had  offered  me  the  means  of  doing, 
I  should  bring  a  stain  upon  my  name  their  tenderness 
might  never  blot  from  it. 

For  some  time,  all  was  silent. 

Then  I  felt  my  hand  clasped  in  the  cold  fingers  of 
two  small  and  dusky  ones,  and  raised  to  the  lips  of 
Clo-ke-ta. 

"  My  brother  is  right,"  she  said.  "  If  he  made  Clo- 
ke-ta  his  squaw,  and  left  her  to  return  to  the  East,  Clo- 
ke-ta  would  die." 

Immediately  after,  I  and  the  Warning  Devil  were 
alone  in  the  gloom. 

It  almost  seemed  to  me  as  if  Par-a-wau  must  have 
resented  my  implied  refusal  to  marry  his  daughter. 
But  he  did  not.  Nay  !  on  the  contrary  I  soon  found  he 
either  assisted  me  in  my  wish  for  liberation,  or  was  glad 
to  get  rid  of  me.  Nevertheless,  I  am  inclined  to  think 
that  my  captor  also  assisted  in  promoting  my  liberation. 
In  his  wish  to  become  the  son-in-law  of  Old  Spotted 
Tail,  he  was,  at  least,  equally  anxious  to  get  rid  of  my 
presence  in  the  tribe.  On  the  ninth  day  of  my  captivity, 
the  aged  chief  gave  me  permission  to  pick  up  my  stakes 
and  quit  my  enforced  camping-ground. 

In  doing  so,  he  presented  me  with  many  presents, 
among  which  was  a  war-club,  magnificently  decorated 
with  Indian  carvings.  This,  he  informed  rne  through 
Par-a-wau,  would  be  a  protection  to  me  from  all  hostile 
tribes,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 


G4r  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

However,  it  was  to  the  gratification  of  finding  me  no 
longer  opposed  to  the  chief  who  had  captured  me,  that 
I  was  mostly  indebted,  This  young  brave  restored  me 
not  only  the  gelding  he  had  deprived  rne  of,  but  my 
rifle,  the  revolver  I  carried,  and  even  the  tobacco-pouch 
which  he  had  appropriated.  Let  no  one,  from  this  time, 
henceforth  say  that  there  is  no  gratitude  in  a  savage 
breast.  He  had  found  that  I  did  not  propose  standing 
in  his  way.  Why  should  he  interpose  any  obstacles  to 
my  removing  myself  completely  out  of  it. 

Par-a-wau  also  gave  me  a  pony  and  a  magnificent 
Indian  robe  or  tunic.  But  the  farewell  that  touched  me 
most  was  that  of  Clo-ke-ta. 

As  I  was  about  leaving  the  Cheyenne  village,  she 
placed  in  my  hand,  with  a  pair  of  embroidered  moccasins, 
a  flower.  It  was  the  one  which  among  the  Indians  is 
supposed  to  typify  memory  and  regret. 

Regretfully,  I  looked  after  her  as  I  left  the  Cheyenne 
settlement.  She  had,  however,  vanished.  Only  the 
Warning  Devil  and  the  young  chief  who  had  taken  me 
prisoner,  were  visible  among  the  thronging  red  men 
who  were  watching  my  departure.  The  last  made  a 
single  gesture.  It  might  have  been  interpreted  to  mean 
one  of  two  things,  either — 

"  God  speed  I  "  or— 

"  Please  the  devil !  that  I  may  never  see  you  again  !  " 

I  was,  at  any  rate,  once  more  a  free  man,  and  had  full 
liberty  to  wander  where  or  in  wThat  direction  I  would. 

The  chief  had  given  me  two  guides.  As  these  Indians 
could  not  speak  a  word  of  English,  I  was  in  one  sense  of 
the  word  companionless.  It  was  barely  some  two  miles 
from  the  Cheyenne  village  when  the  wild  waste  of  the 
country  spread  out  in  an  unbroken  plain  before  my  view, 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  65 

and  I  almost  seemed  to  feel  alone  in  the  world.  The 
primal  days  of  Adam  seemed  to  have  settled  on  the  sol 
itary  waste.  There  was  no  friendly  word  to  greet  our 
progress,  no  hostile  arm  to  impede  our  rushing  gallop. 
Not  the  slightest  sign  of  civilization  was  visible.  The 
enforced  taciturnity  of  the  two  Indians  made  this  but 
the  more  obvious. 

So,  the  first  day  passed. 

On  the  second,  I  saw  an  antelope.  The  stillness, 
which  had  heretofore  been  unbroken  by  anything  save 
the  tramp  of  our  animals,  our  own  breath,  or  the  mut 
tered  exclamations  of  my  two  guides,  was  now  shattered 
by  the  crack  of  my  rifle.  As  the  antelope  fell  to  the 
earth,  I  heard  the  guttural  exclamations  of  my  guides,  in 
which  they  gave  the  expression  of  their  wonder  as  well 
as  their  gratification. 

It  was  very  certainly  a  good  shot.  The  antelope  had 
been  at  long  range.  The  two  Indians  had  been  as 
tonished. 

As  they  trotted  off,  to  secure  the  fallen  animal,  I 
could  not  help  feeling  that  in  their  eyes,  at  least,  I  had 
in  some  measure  justified  the  benevolence  towards  me 
of  Old  Spotted  Tail. 

On  the  third  day  we  struck  the  Emigrant  trail.  The 
night  before,  we  had  encamped  in  a  spot  which  was  as 
lovely  as  any  I  have  ever  seen.  A  running  rivulet  of 
deliciously  cool  water,  fledged  by  green  trees  and 
arched  in  by  the  broad  blue  heaven,  which  girdles  in 
life  on  the  Plains,  gave  us,  on  its  banks,  a  resting-place. 
Here,  I  slept  well,  and  woke  in  the  morning  with  a 
fresh  consciousness  of  the  life,  vigor,  and  beauty  of  the 
world. 

Two  hours  after  our  start  this  day,  we  struck  the  trail. 


66  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

The  guides  came  to  a  sudden  halt,  and  pointing  to 
the  route  I  had  to  continue,  abruptly  left  me.  Their 
characteristic  taciturnity  had  not  deserted  them  for  a 
single  instant. 

During  the  whole  of  this  day  I  followed  the  trail, 
overtaking  and  passing  one  Emigrant  train,  from  whom, 
naturally  enough,  I  could  learn  nothing  of  any  which 
had  preceded  it.  On  the  succeeding  morning,  I,  how 
ever,  encountered  the  Pony  Express,  and  on  inquiry 
learnt  that  a  long  train,  with  a  large  number  of  horses, 
had  been  passed  by  it.  This  train  had  been  encamped 
at  Sweet  Water,  close  to  Independence  Rock,  near  what 
the  rider  called  the  old  Frenchman's. 

"  How  far  off,  is  it  3 "  I  asked. 

"  You  may  reach  them  or  their  halting-place  by  to 
morrow  noon,"  was  the  response. 

He  evidently  did  not  know  the  speed  of  the  animal  I 
was  mounted  on,  or  my  temper.  It  was  before  nine  on 
the  following  morning,  that  I  arrived  at  Captain  Crim's 
halting-place.  He  had  been  detained  here  by  a  dis 
temper  which  had  attacked  the  horses,  and  possibly,  as 
Brighton  Bill  asserted,  by  a  faint  hope  that  I  might 
yet  make  my  re-appearance. 

The  first  who  saw  me  approaching  the  carnp  was 
Tom  Doyle.  His  wild  shout  startled  all  in  the  camp. 

"Hillo!     Here's  Mose." 

The  cry  was  enough.  In  a  few  moments,  I  was  sur 
rounded  and  almost  torn  to  pieces  by  the  nervous  hands 
which  clutched  mine.  Even  Captain  Crim  squeezed 
my  fingers  with  his  own  stalwart  grip,  and  told  me, 
"  how  glad  '  he  '  was  to  see  me,  whole  and  safe  again." 

After  this  came  question  and  reply,  so  fast,  that 
my  tongue,  silent  during  the  last  two  days  and  a  half, 


BUCKSKIN    MOSK  67 

literally  ached  with  its  answers,  and  I  was  glad  enough 
when  the  hour  for  eating  came,  to  which  portion  of  the 
antelope  I  had  killed  on  the  preceding  day  made  no 
despicable  addition,  as  game  had  still  been  scarce  with 
the  boys. 


CHAPTEE  Y. 

A  TEMPEST — THE  BRUTE  WITH  NO  RHEUMATIC  PITY — AN  IM 
PROMPTU  GALLOWS— HANGING  A  RASCAL — MY  STAGE  WARD 
ROBE — UNDER  WATER  WITH  A  WATER-TIGHT  WAGON— THE 
KEG  OF  WHISKEY — ITS  UNFORESEEN  RESULTS— A  MOUNTAIN 
CANNON — NATURAL  SODA-WATER— AN  INDIAN  ATTACK — 
RAISING  MY  FIRST  HAIR — TAKING  A  LESSON  FROM  THE  RED 
MAN— BRITISH  CRITICISM— THE  VALLEY  OF  A  THOUSAND 
SPRINGS. 

THE  rest  which  had  been  given  the  horses  partially 
restored  them,  and  on  the  following  day  the  train  was 
again  in  motion. 

After  reaching  what  is  known  by  the  old  Emigrants 
as  the  last  crossing  of  the  Sweet  Water,  Captain  Grim 
decided  to  take  a  road  farther  north  than  the  usual  one. 
He  had  crossed  the  plains  several  times  before.  Know 
ing  that  the  Sublett's  route  and  Headspath  Cut-off,  as 
well  as  the  Salt  Lake  line  of  travel,  were  peculiarly 
hard  upon  stock,  he  determined  this  time,  to  try  a  track 
of  his  own. 

We  therefore  followed  up  the  Sweet  Water,  crossing 
it  repeatedly,  and  at  length  passed  the  Rocky  Moun 
tains.  Thence  we  went  to  Green  River. 

This  river  presented  us  with  great  difficulties  to  find 
a  place  for  passing  it.  The  current  is,  at  all  times, 
swift  and  strong.  On  this  occasion  it  was  greatly 
swollen,  in  consequence  of  the  heavy  snows  of  the  pre 
ceding  winter,  higher  in  the  mountains.  After  hunting 
for  an  available  ford  more  than  half  a  day,  one  was  at 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  69 

lust  discovered,  and  the  horses  were  brought  over  with 
out  the  slightest  loss. 

That  night,  however,  we  experienced  a  fearful  storm, 
or  rather  a  hurricane. 

It  was  indeed  such  a  tempest  as  I  had  never  yet  ex 
perienced.  Neither  has  it  had  its  parallel  since  in  the 
whole  records  of  the  Storm  Bureau  established  in 
Washington.  The  rain  and  hail  descended  in  literal 
sheets  of  water  and  ice.  The  camp-fires  were  extin 
guished  by  their  fury.  Tents  were  torn  down  and  the 
wagons  containing  our  stores  were  flooded.  The  light 
ning  blazed  incessantly,  and  the  thunder  seemed  to  roll 
in  one  continuous  peal. 

Luckily  for  its,  it  was  not  of  long  duration.  In  some 
three  hours  it  had  spent  its  fury.  Yet  its  effects  were 
felt  by  some  of  us,  for  a  length  of  time.  Poor  Pigeon 
especially  was  taken  down  by  it  with  a  severe  attack  of 
inflammatory  rheumatism.  Since  his  name  was  first  men 
tioned,  it  has  not  again  recurred.  However,  his  sickness 
here  forces  him  upon  my  notice  in  connection  with  an 
other  member  of  our  party. 

The  next  morning,  all  damage  having  been  repaired, 
the  train  was  a^ain  in  motion. 

O 

Having  passed  the  three  Tetons,  gigantic  sentinels  pro 
jected  from  the  main  range  of  mountains,  we  followed 
a  little  stream  which  Crirn  christened  Pine  Creek. 
Beyond  this,  we  unexpectedly  came  upon  a  vast  belt  of 
snow,  extending  through  the  Wind  River  Range.  With 
three  companions,  I  went  over  it  as  far  as  Salt  Creek. 
It  was  found  to  be  completely  impassable  for  the  horses, 
averaging  from  six  to  twenty  feet  in  depth. 

After  holding  a  council,  Captain  Crim  decided  upon 
striking  directly  south  until  we  should  reach  Sublett's 


70  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Cut-off.  Consequently  we  had  to  retrace  our  steps,  and 
encamped  some  twenty  miles  down  Pine  Creek,  for  the 
purpose  of  doing  that  class  of  recoimoitering  which  is 
nothing  else  than  exploring. 

Here  it  is,  that  we  have  once  more  to  do  with  Pigeon. 

There  was  a  man  who  had  some  interest  in  a  small 
portion  of  the  stock.  For  want  of  a  better  and  less  ap 
propriate  name,  I  may  as  well  call  him  Rascall.  While 
delayed  in  our  enforced  encampment,  some  of  us  were 
occupied  in  grazing  the  stock.  Others  were  exploring 
in  every  direction  for  a  means  of  crossing  the  belt  of 
snow  which  hedged  us  in  from  our  westerly  route. 
Rascall  had  nothing  to  do.  Poor  Pigeon  was  lying  in 
his  wagon,  as  helpless  from  rheumatic  pain  as  the  train 
was  in  presence  of  its  blockading  impediment.  Rascall, 
having  no  rheumatic  pity,  took  advantage  of  the  solitary 
and  forlorn  Pigeon,  by  ordering  him  out  of  the  wagon. 
In  vain  did  the  poor  devil  remonstrate  with  him.  He 
was  utterly  unable  to  move.  Rascall  determined  upon 
proving  this,  and  being  alone  with  Pigeon  in  the  camp, 
tried  the  common  experiment  of  brutes,  by  thrashing 
him  in  the  most  unmerciful  manner  possible. 

Like  many  other  brutes,  he  did  this  without  counting 
the  possible  consequences. 

On  the  return  of  the  boys  to  the  camp,  they  heard 
of  this  from  Pigeon,  who  was,  from  his  harmless  good 
temper,  a  general  if  somewhat  despised  favorite.  Nat 
urally  enough,  their  contempt  was  forgotten  in  their 
pity.  They  determined  upon  a  queer  revenge  for  his 
treatment  of  poor  Pigeon.  They,  consequently,  rigged 
up  an  impromptu  gallows  by  joining  two  wagon  poles 
together.  From  this  they  suspended  a  full-length  por- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  71 

trait  of  the  offender,  although,  at  first,  serious  thoughts 
had  been  entertained  of  suspending  himself, 

It  would  be  needless  to  say  that  the  likeness  was 
scarcely  of  sufficient  academic  correctness  to  have  justi 
fied  its  limner  in  claiming  any  position  as  a  portrait- 
painter. 

Seeing  this,  in  order  to  avoid  any  mistakes,  with  the 
artist's  permission,  I  inscribed  beneath  it  "  RASCAL,"  in 
very  unmistakable  letters. 

Either  the  portrait  or  the  name  had  an  immediate  ef 
fect.  Captain  Grim,  who  certainly  had  an  artistic  eye 
for  painting  or  printing,  one  or  both,  as  well  as  an  un 
mistakable  love  of  justice,  saw  it.  He  immediately  in 
quired  into  the  matter,  and  then  visited  Pigeon.  The 
poor  fellow's  statement  was  enough.  As  has  been  seen, 
Grim  was  not  a  man  of  many  words,  but  of  very  deci 
sive  temper.  He  expelled  Rascall  from  the  camp,  and 
it  was  only  after  some  four  or  five  days'  wandering  in 
its  vicinity,  and  imploring  any  of  us  lie  chanced  to  meet 
for  pardon,  that  on  consultation  with  his  boys  the  Cap 
tain  finally  allowed  him  to  re-enter  it. 

At  length,  a  way  out  of  our  difficulty  was  found. 
Through  deep  gorges  and  canons  we  reached  Lambert 
Creek,  and  after  following  it  for  some  distance,  crossed 
it,  finding  ourselves  once  more  in  the  Green  River  re 
gion.  Thence,  striking  across  a  lower  range  of  moun 
tains,  we  came  to  Sublett's  Cut-off. 

Shortly  after  this,  above  Ham's  Fork  an  accident  oc 
curred  to  one  of  the  wagons,  which,  although  of  slight 
account  to  the  train,  was  of  serious  moment  to  myself. 

In  passing  this  stream,  the  wagon  containing,  with 
other  property,  the  whole  of  my  wardrobe,  stage  and 
otherwise,  sprung  a  leak.  It  should  be  mentioned  that 


72  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

wagons  for  crossing  the  Plains,  are,  for  obvious  reasons, 
generally  made  water-tight.  Being  struck  by  an  under 
current  which  rendered  it  impossible  to  move  it  rapidly, 
it  foundered  with  all  its  contents.  Seeing  the  mishap 
from  the  shore,  our  Captain  sung  out  to  the  boys  to  save 
whatever  of  the  unlive  stock  in  it  they  could.  However, 
without  waiting  for  orders,  I  and  Brighton  Bill,  whose 
personal  property  had  gone  under  the  water  with  mine, 
had  both  rushed  to  the  scene  of  our  loss,  and  entering 
the  stream,  were  hard  at  work. 

We  remained  in  that  wretched  Fork  for  five  hours, 
fishing  out  of  it,  as  it  seemed,  everything  but  our  own 
property.  Necessarily,  much  besides  this  was  lost.  The 
infernal  undertow  of  the  stream  carried  all  it  could 
bear  with  it,  away.  Not  only  had  it  plundered  me  of 
my  stage-wardrobe,  but  of  the  whole  of  my  wearing  ap 
parel,  exclusive  of  that  I  then  stood  upright  in.  Not 
even  a  single  shirt  was  left  me.  At  length,  when  it  was 
evident  no  hope  remained  of  finding  it,  sulkily  angry, 
wet  and  chilled  not  only  to  the  bone,  but  to  my  very 
marrow,  I  struggled,  with  the  well-nigh  as  miserable 
Bill,  to  the  farther  bank.  Here  we  found  Captain  Grim 
awaiting  us.  At  his  side,  stood  a  consolatory  keg  of 
whiskey,  and  in  his  hand  was  the  immortal  tin-cup,  so 
lovingly  identified  with  daily  life  on  the  Plains,  and  the 
early  history  of  our  nation  upon  the  Pacific  coast.  He 
was  a  sagaciously  provident  leader.  Praiseworthily  in 
terested  in  our  health,  he  supplied  both  of  us  with  a  lib 
eral  cupful  of  the  fortifying  elixir.  Hungry,  as  well 
as  cold,  for  it  was  now  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
and  I  had  eaten  nothing  since  morning,  I  forgot  my 
usual  prudence,  and  asked  him  for  another  cupful  of 
the  inspiring  fluid. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  73 

"  Do  you  think  you  can  stand  it,  Mose  ? "  was  his  far 
from  unnatural  inquiry. 

The  whiskey  had  not  yet  sufficient  time  to  put  an  end 
to  the  shivering  produced  by  my  protracted  cold  bath. 
My  teeth  were  actually  chattering  in  my  head,  with  a 
castanet  accompaniment  to  my  discomfort. 

"  Certainly-a-a-a,  I  can-n-n-n,  Cap  ! " 

"  The  cup  holds  a  good  half -pint." 

"  And  I  have  been-n-n-n  in  the  water  ha-a-a-lf  a  day, 
Captain ! " 

"  Very  well ! "  he  replied,  with  a  commiserating  look 
at  my  drowned-rat-like  appearance,  "  you  shall  have  it." 

He  very  certainly  would  never  have  allowed  me  to 
soak  so  much  inwardly,  had  it  not  been  for  my  thorough 
outward  soaking.  Nor,  indeed,  but  for  my  tribulation 
under  my  recent  loss,  should  I  have  desired  such  an 
inward  soaking.  As  I  swallowed  the  whiskey,  I  felt  my 
whole  frame  bursting  into  a  tingling  and  generous  glow. 
However,  nothing  more  is  remembered  by  me  until  the 
following  morning. 

Then  I  awoke  in  Captain  Crim's  tent.  I  had  been 
stripped  to  the  skin  and  wrapped  in  a  blanket. 

My  clothes,  now,  alas!  iny  only  suit,  had  been  re 
moved  from  my  person  by  his  orders,  and  dried  at  a 
large  fire,  whose  smouldering  embers  were  in  the  last 
stage  of  inanition  without  the  tent.  They  were  lying 
beside  me.  It  was  with  a  somewhat  sheepish  look,  I 
imagine,  that  I  got  into  them,  for  the  Captain  was  al 
ready  out  and  about.  What  blowing  up  might  be  in 
store  for  me  from  such  a  rigid  disciplinarian  as  he  was, 
I  could  scarcely  imagine. 

As  1  went,  or  to  speak  more  truly,  sneaked  out  into 
4 


74:  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

the  sharp  morning  air,  what  was  my  surprise  to  hear 
him  say,  in  a  cheery  voice : 

"  Well,  Mose  !  You  are  all  right  now,  are  you  not  ? 
To  work,  my  lad !  I  wish  all  my  boys  were  like  you 
and  Bill !  You  worked  yesterday,  like  a  couple  of  he 
roes." 

It  was  an  agreeable  reception,  and  so  widely  different 
from  the  one  I  had  anticipated,  that  for  the  moment  I 
forgot  my  loss.  Straightening  myself  up,  with  a  mod 
est  disclaimer  of  his  praise,  I  resolved  to  keep  my  in 
tended  apology  under  the  lock  and  key  of  a  silent 
tongue. 

It  was,  I  think,  about  noon,  some  two  weeks  after 
this,  we  reached  Bear  River.  Following  its  course  until 
we  came  to  Soda  Springs,  our  camp  was  pitched  for  the 
night,  between  them  and  the  silenced  volcanic  crater 
beyond. 

This  has  been  so  often  described,  that  to  do  so  again 
would  be  a  waste  of  words.  But  on  a  hunting  trip 
some  ten  miles  more  or  less  North,  I  discovered  another 
natural  curiosity,  to  which  I  was  the  first  to  call  atten 
tion.  On  entering  a  small  valley,  I  heard  a  continuous 
whizzing  and  grumbling  noise,  which  was  unlike  any 
thing  I  had  before  listened  to.  Looking  around,  I  saw 
in  the  scarped  face  of  an  almost  perpendicular  moun 
tain  a  cavity  some  twenty-five  or  thirty  feet  above  the 
level  on  which  I  was  standing.  From  this  cavity  came 
a  broad  and  persistent  jet  of  steam.  This  evidently 
caused  the  sound  which  had  startled  me.  It  was  the 
result  of  volcanic  action  of  some  description,  although  I 
was  scarcely  scientific  enough,  even  in  a  small  way,  to 
reason  this  out. 

Suddenly,  without  the  slightest  note  of  preparation,  a 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  75 

huge  ball  of  hot  mud  and  fragments  of  stone  was  pro 
jected  across  the  valley  from  this  opening  in  the  preci 
pice.  It  was  followed  by  a  sharp  roar,  like  the  report 
from  some  heavy  piece  of  artillery. 

As  I  stood  watching  the  orifice  from  which  the  jet  of 
steam  poured  for  some  twelve  or  thirteen  minutes,  this 
phenomenon  was  repeated,  and  in  something  more  than 
an  hour  I  counted  some  five  repetitions  of  it. 

Farther  up  the  valley,  which  was  about  a  hundred 
and  fifty  yards  in  width,  according  to  a  rough  guess,  I 
came  to  another  curious  phenomenon.  Opposite  this 
natural  cannon,  the  valley  formed  a  broad  semicircle, 
and  on  the  extreme  side  of  this  was  a  tolerably  large 
plateau  of  hard  and  sandy  soil,  from  the  summit  of 
which  I  heard  a  singular  hissing  sound.  Hobbling  my 
horse  below,  I  climbed  to  the  summit  of  this,  and  my 
curiosity  was  rewarded  by  the  discovery  of  another 
freak  of  Nature.  The  summit  of  the  plateau  was  sur 
rounded  with  a  number  of  funnel-shaped  apertures, 
from  which  water  constantly  rose  and  fell  again,  bub 
bling  and  sparkling  like  the  contents  of  a  soda-water 
bottle  after  the  cork  has  been  removed.  The  taste  of 
this  water,  which  was  warm,  was,  however,  scarcely  so 
agreeable  as  the  temperance  beverage  to  which  I  have 
compared  it. 

Slightly  behind  me,  the  natural  cannon  still  contin 
ued  to  belch  forth  its  projectiles  from  the  scarp  of  the 
rocky  f  ortalice  in  which  they  were  stored.  Here,  per 
haps,  were  a  number  of  relief-valves  which  prevented 
its  destruction  by  a  wider  and  more  devastating  explo 
sion. 

There  is  naturally  small  marvel  that  on  this  day 
I  killed  no  game.  My  time  had  been  too  much  occu- 


76  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

pied  in  the  examination  of  these  singular  exhibitions  of 
created  oddity,  for  me  to  track  deer  or  buffalo,  if  in 
deed  any  were  in  the  neighborhood. 

For  what  reason  1  can  scarcely  say,  the  name  I  gave 
this  place  was  Death's  Head  Yalley.  It  retains  it  to  the 
present  day. 

Our  camp  was  broken  up  on  the  next  morning,  and 
we  continued,  in  an  almost  westerly  line,  our  course.  We 
were  advancing  into  a  thickly  inhabited  Indian  country. 
From  time  to  time  what  we  believed  signals  were  given 
and  answered  from  either  side  of  the  train.  No  Indians 
were,  however,  visible. 

It  became  clear,  when  we  encamped  for  the  night  by 
Raft  River,  that  if  the  natives  put  in  any  show  at  all,  it 
would  be  a  hostile  one. 

The  result  of  this  was,  that  after  our  brief  supper  was 
over,  Captain  Crini  detailed  me  to  make  a  reconnois- 
sance  of  the  country  round  our  camping-place.  We 
had  long  since  begun  to  employ  military  terms.  The 
reconnoissance  proved  him  to  have  been  right.  Low 
and  partially  smothered  Indian  fires  were  detected  by 
me,  through  the  smoke  rising  from  them,  upon  every 
side,  and  on  my  report  being  made,  our  guards  for  the 
night  were  doubled. 

Next  day,  by  its  events,  amply  proved  the  advisability 
of  this  vigilance. 

We  had  reached  the  City  of  Rocks,  some  seven  or 
eight  miles  from  the  point  at  which  we  had  crossed  the 
last-mentioned  stream.  The  advanced  guard  under  me 
were  moving  cautiously  along,  exploring,  almost,  I  had 
said,  every  inch  of  the  road,  and  occasionally  throwing 
a  quick  and  marvellous  glance  at  the  springing  spires, 
stretching  battlements,  cupolas  and  towers  which  bore 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  77 

witness  to  the  plentiful  imagination  of  the  great  Primal 
Architect  and  Supreme  Master  Mason  of  the  earth, 
when  we  began  to  discover  visible  traces  of  Indian  life. 
Some  ten  minutes  after,  the  whole  of  this  strange  city 
of  the  unliving  was  literally  blackened  by  live  and 
threatening  red-skins.  The  word,  inappropriate  as  it 
may  be  to  their  color,  must  be  pardoned.  There  was, 
and  consequently  is,  no  more  time  to  pick  phrases  than 
to  indulge  in  any  descriptive  power  I  may  possess. 

Giving  the  alarm,  we  fell  back  on  the  main  body  of 
our  party. 

Never  before  had  I  so  much  occasion  afforded  me  to 
admire  the  natural  nerve  and  military  capacity  of  our 
leader,  in  a  position  of  emergency. 

The  wagons  of  the  train  were  formed  in  a  close  circle, 
with  the  horses  hobbled  inside,  so  as  to  prevent  the 
chance  of  a  stampede. 

As  for  ourselves,  we  were  posted  under  cover  of  our 
improvised  fortification,  to  await  the  attack,  which  was 
not  long  before  it  burst  upon  us. 

These  preparations  had  been  as  speedily  made,  as  the 
orders  had  been  readily  given. 

They  did  not  take  the  boys  more  than  ten  minutes. 
Nor  had  we  been  any  too  rapid  in  perfecting  them. 

A  description  of  the  fight  would  be  impossible  for 
me,  as  I  only  could  detail  that  portion  of  it  in  which  I 
was  bodily  concerned.  It  may  be  sufficient  to  say,  that 
the  first  pitched  battle  with  the  red  man,  in  which  I  was 
concerned,  lasted  for  perhaps  some  fifteen  minutes.  The 
savages  then  seemed  to  have  enough  of  it,  and  retired 
in  admirable  disorder.  The  right  term  would  possibly 
be  this — they  ran  away. 

Dashing  out  after  them,  we  followed  the  flying  red- 


78  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

4 

skins  for  some  distance,  and  I  had  the  satisfaction  of 
raising  my  first  hair,  or  in  the  language  of  the  East, 
taking  my  first  scalp. 

An  Indian,  who  concealed  himself  behind  a  large 
rock,  discharged  four  arrows  at  me  almost  with  the 
continuous  rapidity  of  the  lightning  in  the  tempest  we 
had  so  recently  experienced.  But  what  might  be  good 
for  the  goose  might  be  equally  good  for  the  gander. 
Rocks  were  at  a  fairly  large  discount  in  that  city  of 
them.  Taking  advantage  of  one  of  these,  I  seized  the 
opportunity  afforded  me  by  an  unguarded  movement  of 
the  enemy  and  dropped  him  with  a  bullet  through  his 
brain. 

Some  three  more  dead  Indians  lay  scattered  round 
the  wagons,  while  only  one  of  our  men  had  received 
any  hurt.  He  was  an  Irishman,  who  had  received  a 
shot  in  the  right  side.  It  had  been  made  with  a  ragged 
ball,  which  had  torn  his  flesh  frightfully.  However,  the 
wound  did  not  prove  fatal. 

The  City  of  Rocks  was  now  quiet  enough,  and  shortly 
after  Captain  Grim  gave  orders  for  again  starting. 

Very  necessarily,  we  were  too  fully  employed  in  dis 
cussing  our  first  Indian  fight  (or  more  properly  perhaps 
I  was,  as  several  of  my  companions  had  crossed  the 
Plains  before)  to  indulge  in  a  prolonged  examination 
of  the  quaint,  natural  architecture  through  which  we 
were  moving. 

On  arriving  at  sundown  near  Goose  Creek,  our  captain 
decided  upon  an  extended  examination  of  the  country 
round,  before  entering  the  canon.  His  reason  for  this 
was,  that,  on  two  previous  occasions,  the  Indians  had  in 
this  locality  robbed  him  of  all  his  horses,  leaving  him  to 
find  his  way  to  California  on  foot.  Little  wisdom  ex- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  79 

ceeds  that  which  is  taught  ns  by  past  misfortune.  At 
least,  I  may  safely  swear  that  I  have  generally  found 
this  to  he  the  case. 

Our  men  were  accordingly  divided  into  three  parties, 
of  tolerably  equal  numbers. 

One  had  the  care  of  the  train  and  horses.  Another 
had  to  pass  across  the  mountains  on  the  right,  and  the 
last,  those  on  the  left  of  the  canon.  Grim  did  me  the 
honor  of  detailing  me  in  command  of  the  second  party, 
because  his  past  experience  had  convinced  him  this  was 
the  side  from  which  most  danger  might  be  expected, 
and  as  he  was  pleased  to  observe,  I  "  had  not  only  pluck 
enough  for  anything,  but  plenty  of  prudence."  In  the 
first  part  of  this  compliment,  I  completely  justify  his 
eulogy.  The  second  portion  of  it  may  be  subject  to 
more  question,  especially  when  my  youth  is  remem 
bered. 

My  party  consisted  of  twenty-eight  of  the  best  men 
connected  with  the  train,  amongst  whom  were  Brighton 
Bill. 

Some  three  miles  along  the  side  of  the  canon  we 
began  to  move  in  regular  Indian  fashion,  singly  and  as 
quietly  as  we  could,  availing  ourselves  of  every  cover 
possible.  Neither  was  this  one  whit  too  soon.  As  we 
crept  over  a  small  hill,  we  discovered,  not  more  than  six 
hundred  yards  from  us,  a  party  of  red-skins.  These 
were  some  fifty  in  number. 

Luckily,  perhaps,  I  had  been  the  first  of  my  party. 
Dropping  as  if  I  had  been  picked  off  by  a  bullet,  I 
motioned  my  men  to  imitate  me. 

Then,  placing  my  finger  on  my  lips  with  a  warning 
movement,  we  began  crawling  to  the  right,  behind  a 
number  of  huge  rocks,  and  managed  to  advance  to  with- 


80  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

in  some  two  hundred  yards  of  them,  without  giving 
them  the  slightest  alarm.  The  red  devils  were  watch 
ing  the  movement  of  the  train  as,  below  them,  it  wound 
slowly  np  the  canon.  More  than  probably,  if  they 
could  count  the  number  of  boys  we  had  left  with  it, 
they  were  congratulating  themselves  on  the  way,  in 
which  they  must  have  supposed,  they  had  thinned  us  out. 

Eaising  my  rifle  I  took  deliberate  aim,  in  which  I 
was  imitated  by  the  rest  of  my  party.  Each  of  us  had 
selected  his  own  man. 

The  report  of  my  weapon  was  followed  simultaneously 
almost  by  the  whole  of  those  of  my  fellows,  ringing  out 
sharply  and  clearly. 

As  the  smoke  cleared  away  immediately  after,  we 
saw  the  whole  of  the  Indians,  who  had  not  been  slain, 
flying  at  the  top  of  their  speed  across  the  mountain. 

Twenty-three  of  them  were  on  the  ground,  dying  or 
dead,  of  which  flve  were  undoubtedly  white  men. 
Brighton  Bill  gazed  upon  the  dead  bodies  reflectively. 

"  You're  as  good  as  an  Injin,  Mose ! "  he  said. 
"  But  look  'ere.  Wouldn't  it  'ave  been  better  to  give 
'em  the  lead,  face  to  face." 

"  D'  yer  think  the  skulking  beasts  would  ha'  given 
yer  a  fair  chance?" 

This  was  said  by  one  of  the  most  silent  men,  and  best 
shots,  who  had  enlisted  with  Captain  Grim. 

"  That's  so,  for  sartain  !  "  cried  one  of  my  boys,  with 
an  oath. 

"I  jist  tell  yer,  Cap!"  said  the  man  who  had  replied 
to  Brighton  Bill,  as  he  kicked  over  one  of  the  dead 
bodies  in  wliich  a  ball  had  perforated  the  skull — proba 
bly  it  was  that  of  the  Indian  he  had  drawn  a  bead  on, 
"  this  was  a  darned  square  bit  of  Injin  cunning. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  81 

Yer've  shown  'em,  two  can  play  their  game.  I'm 
proud  to  sarve  under  yer." 

Brighton  Bill  said  no  more. 

He  was  evidently  thinking  profoundly  upon  the  dif 
ferent  style  in  which  matters  were  managed  in  crossing 
the  Plains,  to  that  in  which  they  might  have  been, 
in  case  of  necessity,  in  his  own  country. 

On  rejoining  the  train  at  the  head  of  the  canon,  and 
reporting  the  affair  to  our  Captain,  he  was  pleased  to 
say,  I  had  proved  the  justice  of  what  he  had  said,  when 
he  appointed  me  to  the  command  of  the  party.  The 
congratulations  on  my  success,  however,  which  I  re 
ceived  from  my  companions,  were  considerably  warmer 
and  more  gratifying.  For  some  twenty-four  hours,  I 
actually  found  myself  promoted  by  general  acclamation 
to  the  position  of  a  hero.  A  little  pluck  and  caution 
count  heavily  on  the  Plains. 

Bill,  however,  did  not  change  his  opinions.  Although 
still  as  warmly  as  ever  attached  to  me,  he  said  on  the 
same  evening,  while  sitting  round  our  camp-fire: 

"  I  don't  care,  Mose !  It  would  'ave  been  more 
square  to  give  'em  the  lead,  face  to  face." 

Late  on  the  following  day  we  reached  Thousand 
Spring  Valley,  where  the  head-waters  of  the  Humboldt 
.River  take  their  rise.  Here  water  and  game  were  good 
and  •  abundant,  and  the  train  remained  two  days  to  rest 
the  stock,  while  I  and  some  others  scoured  the  adja 
cent  country  in  quest  of  fresh  meat. 

A  lovelier  spot  than  this  valley,  it  would,  perhaps,  be 
impossible  to  find  in  the  whole  continent,  and  I  could, 
while  I  wandered  through  it,  scarcely  avoid  reflecting 
on  the  change  which  a  hundred,  or  in  all  probability  no 
more  than  fifty,  years  might  produce  here.  Then,  it  will 


82  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

be  thoroughly  peopled.  Possibly,  a  great  inland  city 
may  have  been  reared  by  the  bustling  and  intelligent 
life  of  my  country.  The  red  man  will  have  been 
effaced  by  the  onward  march  of  civilization,  or  compelled 
by  sheer  necessity  to  accept  a  settled  life.  A  Sharp's 
rifle  or  a  colt  will  no  longer  be  possessions  of  paramount 
necessity  to  him  who  travels  thitherward.  The  buffalo 
will  have  been  cleared  out  from  this  section  of  the 
States,  and  an  antelope  steak  will  be  a  rarity.  At  that 
period  a  man  of  my,  at  this  time,  nomadic  instincts  will 
be  compelled  to  search  for  fresh  ground  in  which  to  de 
velop  and  enjoy  them.  The  interior  of  Africa  or  South 
America  will  be  the  only  parts  of  the  world  in  which 
he  can  follow  the  life  of  a  wanderer,  unchecked  and 
unhindered. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  MISTY  MORNING— ANOTHER  INDIAN  SCRIMMAGE — MOUNTAIN- 
FEVER— NEVER  SAY  DIE— A  RASCALLY  PROCEEDING— MY  SIX- 
SHOOTER  AND  A  SOMERSAULT — u  Lo  !  THE  POOR  INDIAN  !  " — • 
His  LETTER  OP  INTRODUCTION— THE  ULTIMATE  WARMTH  OP 
His  RECEPTION— NEARLY  SQUARING  ACCOUNTS— A  RELAPSE 
— LEFT  BEHIND  IN  HIGHLY  DRAMATIC  ATTIRE— FIRST  RE 
SULTS  WITH  NEW  ACQUAINTANCES— KINDNESS  OF  MY  CAPTAIN 
— GREATER  KINDNESS  OP  His  FRIEND— BECOMING  A  GOLD- 
DIGGER. 

IT  was  what  sailors  term  a  nasty  day  when  we  left 
this  valley.  A  heavy  mist,  which  was  almost  rain, 
veiled  the  surrounding  range  of  country.  Little  beyond 
the  eighth  of  a  mile,  in  front  of  us  or  on  either  side, 
was  visible. 

About  noon,  some  of  our  scouts  brought  the  Captain 
information  that  matters  looked  squally,  ahead  of  the 
train. 

In  fact,  they  had  discovered  some  fresh  traces  of  our 
red  enemies.  A  halt  was  at  once  ordered,  and  I  was 
despatched  ahead  with  forty  of  the  men  to  discover,  if 
possible,  what  the  present  danger  might  be. 

Nothing  for  some  time  presenting  itself  to  verify  the 
report  Captain  Crim  had  received,  I  took  a  leaf  from 
his  book  and  divided  my  boys  into  two  parties.  This 
resulted  about  half  a  mile  farther  in  a  sharp  firing  from 
the  other  party,  which  suddenly  ceased,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  more  we  came  across  the  Indians,  who  were 
retreating  in  good^order.  Once  more,  I  turned  what  I 


84  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

had  learnt  since  I  first  joined  Grim,  to  good  account. 
Concealing  my  men,  we  astonished  them  by  a  round 
volley,  which  sent  them  off  in  double-quick  time. 

We  were  once  more  masters  of  the  situation,  and 
shortly  after  the  train  was  again  advancing. 

Keeping  a  careful  look-out,  in  order  to  prevent  an 
ambush,  this  evening  we  struck  Gravelly  Ford,  on  the 
southern  bank  of  the  Humboldt. 

After  we  had  crossed  this,  I  was  taken  sick  with  that 
terrible  disease,  emigrants  have  named  the  mountain- 
fever.  For  the  last  two  days,  I  had  been  feeling  some- 
wrhat  under  the  weather,  with  occasional  racking  pain 
and  headache.  Never  having  previously  known  what 
actual  sickness  was,  save  from  the  result  of  accident,  I 
had  fancied  it  was  nothing,  and  would  speedily  pass 
away.  But,  I  was  wrong.  Unable  either  to  walk  or 
ride,  my  companions  were  obliged  to  place  me  in  a 
wagon,  and  I  became  an  invalid  under  the  charge  of 
the  doctor  who  had  accompanied  us. 

Gaptaiii  Grim  was  more  than  kind  to  me  at  this  time. 
In  fact,  he  would  not  give  me  up,  although  the  doctor, 
ignorant  of  the  toughness  of  my  constitution,  actually 
told  him  that  I  was  past  recovery. 

"  We'll  never  say  die,  doctor,  until  we  leave  him  be 
hind  us,  with  a  wooden  board  at  his  head." 

It  was  impossible  for  me  to  avoid  hearing  this,  as  the 
observation  was  made  by  Grim  at  a  few  yards'  distance 
from  the  head  of  the  wagon  in  which  I  was  stretched. 
In  spite  of  the  pain  and  thirst  from  which  I  was  suffer 
ing,  as  well  as  my  exhausted  condition,  I  could  not  re 
frain  from  a  hollow  chuckle,  knowing  how  much  life 
there  was  yet  in  my  body.  At  the  same  time,  I  could 
not  but  feel  grateful  to  the  Captain  for  his  words.  It 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  85 

was  clear  he  did  not  intend  my  bones  to  be  cleaned  by 
a  stray  wolf  or  some  carrion-devouring  bird,  whose  scent 
might  lead  them  to  my  carcass. 

But  I  did  not  know  how  the  villany  of  one  man  was 
watching  for  the  chance  of  putting  me  out  of  the  way. 

My  protection  of 'poor  Pigeon  had  made  me  an  enemy 
in  Rascall.  He  had  heard  what  the  doctor  said,  and 
went  among  the  men,  some  of  whom  detested  me  on 
the  score  of  the  favor  the  Captain  had  accorded  me, 
grumbling  over  the  necessity  of  carrying  "  dead 
weight  ! "  In  this  kindly  manner,  he  had  disposed  of 
me  before  I  was  fit  for  burial. 

Through 'this  fellow's  instrumentality,  I  was,  when 
the  Captain  happened  to  be  at  the  head  of  the  train, 
taken  out  of  the  wagon,  and  placed  upon  the  earth, 
wrapped  in  a  couple  of  blankets,  with  a  small  quantity 
of  water  beside  me. 

At  this  time,  I  was  too  weak  even  to  utter  a  feeble 
remonstrance. 

By  a  fortuitous  circumstance,  or  I  should  possibly 
say  a  providential  one,  Brighton  Bill  carne  by  shortly 
afterwards.  In  his  astonishment  he  approached  and 
spoke  to  me.  I  was  utterly  unable  to  make  any  reply. 
My  friend — for  in  spite  of  his  opinion  in  regard  to  my 
manner  of  settling  accounts  with  the  Indians,  lie  proved 
himself  a  true  one — hurried  on  to  the  Captain,  whom 
he  reached  some  quarter  of  an  hour  afterwards. 

His  rage,  as  well  as  that  of  most  of  my  companions, 
was,  as  Bill  subsequently  told  me,  frightful  He  grew 
absolutely  livid  with  wrath,  ordering  an  immediate  halt, 
and  coining  back  himself,  to  superintend  my  removal 
from  my  present  couch  to  the  wagon  Rascall  had  taken 
me  from. 


86  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  We'd  better  string  this  Eascall  up,  at  once.  He's  a 
dirty  varmint,  and  not  worth  shot  or  powder." 

This  was  the  expression  of  opinion  of  the  silent  indi 
vidual,  who  had  declared  his  gratification  at  "  sarving 
under  me."  It  would  have  been  put  in  execution,  there 
can  be  small  doubt,  if  Captain  Grim  had  not  chanced  to 
hear  it.  Nor,  do  I  think  lie  would  deeply  have  grieved 
over  this  way  of  settling  matters  between  me  and  Ras- 
call.  However,  the  position  of  the  latter  with  regard 
to  the  cattle  which  has  been  earlier  stated,  prevented 
Cri m's  having  any  ostensible  hand  in  such  a  condign 
punishment.  He  consequently  suppressed  this  inclina 
tion  on  the  part  of  my  companions,  giving  the  fellow, 
who  for  several  hours  kept  out  of  his  way,  a  severe 
reprimand,  and  adding  a  significant  hint,  that  should  I 
chance  to  recover,  it  would  be  well  for  him  if  he  gave 
me  a  wide  berth  in  future. 

Singularly  enough,  from  the  hour  in  which  Rascall 
had  calculated  to  leave  me  behind  the  train — like  a  worn- 
out  dog  kicked  from  the  door  of  a  brutal  master's 
dwelling — I  began  slowly  to  recover. 

One  might  have  supposed  that  the  lesson  lie  had  re 
ceived,  in  the  way  his  conduct  had  been  met  with,  both 
by  the  boys  and  our  Captain,  might  have  prevented  any 
further  exhibition  of  his  dislike  to  me.  However,  this 
was  not  so.  Some  two  days  after,  while  I  was  still  too 
weak  to  leave  the  wagon,  he  seized  the  opportunity  of 
its  being  comparatively  alone,  to  order  me  in  an  insolent 
manner  to — 

"  Get  out  of  it,  and  walk." 

As  I  gave  him  no  answer,  he  jumped  into  it  for  the 
purpose  of  beating  me,  doubtless,  as  he  had  formerly 
treated  Pigeon.  While  his  hand  was  lifted,  however, 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  87 

lie  found  himself  covered  with  my  six-shooter.  Al 
though  too  weak  to  walk,  I  was  now  strong  enough  to 
have  pulled  a  trigger,  and  he  saw  I  was. 

"  You  had  better  get  out  of  this,  you  infernal  scoun 
drel  !  unless  you  prefer  a  bullet  in  your  body." 

Low  and  weak  as  my  voice  was,  it  was  determined 
enough,  to  rid  me  of  Ilascall's  presence.  The  way  in 
which  he  vanished  was  so  rapid,  that  had  I  been  in  a 
condition  for  it,  one  of  my  old  peals  of  laughter  would 
have  accompanied  the  somersault  with  which  his  retreat 
from  the  wagon  was  effected. 

We  had  reached  Smoke  Creek  before  I  was  enabled 
to  rise  and  crawl,  rather  than  walk,  for  the  first  time 
through  the  camp.  Here  we  passed  two  days,  only  re 
lieved  by  an  attempt,  on  the  part  of  the  Indians,  to  stam 
pede  our  stock.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  this  attempt  had 
settled  the  fact  of  my  recovery.  At  any  rate,  I  found 
myself  again  able  to  use  my  rifle  with  something  of  my 
old  vitality. 

Then  we  passed  to  Mud  Springs,  where  we  again 
rested  for  two  days,  the  feed  for  the  cattle  being  excel 
lent. 

From  this  place,  our  track  was  one  of  the  meanest 
ever  fashioned  by  God  or  man.  Rough  fragments  of 
rock,  deep  gullies,  rapid  descents,  and  almost  perpen 
dicular  rises,  with  occasional  quagmires  and  tangled 
grease-wood,  barred  the  road.  We  had  to  move  over 
the  ground  with  as  great  hesitation  and  caution  as  a 
fair  dame  displayed  in  navigating  Broadway,  during  the 
snows  of  the  last  winter.  It  was  possibly  in  the  very 
worst  part  of  this  diabolical  track,  that  we  were  con 
fronted,  as  if  by  magic,  with  a  red-skin. 

He  made  signs  of  peace,  and  on  being  permitted  to 


88  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

advance,  presented  Captain  Grim  with  a  paper  from  the 
Indian  agent  at  Pyramid  Lake.  This  Indian  agent, 
like  all  the  others  of  the  class  employed  by  our  Govern 
ment,  was  undoubtedly  as  little  acquainted  with  the 
nature  of  the  red  man  as  any  Member  of  Congress 
could  well  be.  Phil  Sheridan  understands  him  a  good 
deal  better.  Well,  this  document  set  forth  that  the 
bearer  was  a  good  Lo,  and  friendly  disposed,  recom 
mending  any  emigrant-train  who  might  encounter  him, 
to  give  him  biscuit,  bread,  tobacco,  or  any  other  such 
luxuries  in  their  power  to  bestow.  Of  course,  I  do  not 
vouch  for  the  exact  words  of  this  precious  paper. 

Our  Captain  complied  with  the  half -request  and  half- 
order,  and  the  Lo  left  us. 

Scarcely  had  we  advanced  a  mile  farther,  than  he 
appeared  again  at  the  head  of  our  train,  in  the  com 
pany  of  thirty  or  forty  other  Los,  all  mounted  on  the 
regular  Indian  pony.  Let  me  here  say,  that  a  dirtier 
and  filthier  set  of  red-skins,  I  never  saw.  Had  the 
wind  set  in  our  direction,  I  feel  the  perfume  exhaled 
from  their  carcasses  would  have  been  overpowering. 
Once  more  displaying  the  paper  he  had  before  shown, 
they  again  commenced  begging.  More  provisions  were 
given  them  by  Crim.  Actually  loaded  down  with 
bread,  corned  meat,  flour,  sugar,  and  other  dainties 
adapted  to  tickle  the  aboriginal  palate,  they  at  last  de 
parted. 

"  Did  you  see,  Cap !  "  I  asked,  "  how,  the  red  beggar 
to  the  right  of  the  fellow  was  eying  our  horses  ? " 

"  Yes !     We  shall  have  a  little  trouble  before  long." 

"  Good  Heavens !  Then,  why  did  you  give  the  stink 
ing  devils  what  they  asked  for  ? " 

"  You  see,  Mose,  the  scoundrels  showed  me  that  worth- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  89 

less  paper.  To  be  sure,  I  might  have  done  what  many 
would,  and  peppered  them  at  once.  It  would  have 
saved  us  a  few  hours'  time  and  trouble.  However,  if  we 
have  to  go  in  for  them,  there  will  be  some  satisfaction 
in  knowing  it  is  entirely  their  own  fault." 

"  Do  you  not  see  they  have  stopped  at  the  turn  of  the 
darned  track,  Captain  ? " 

"  Yes,  Mose,  I  do." 

"  You  do  not  mean  to  give  the  thieving  vagabonds, 
anything  more  ? " 

"  Certainly  I  do,  Mose."  He  said  this,  grimly  finger 
ing  his  rifle  in  an  ominous  manner.  "But — " 

"Well,  Cap!" 

"  Look  here.  Just  leave  the  vagabond  who  showed 
us  the  agent's  dirty  hieroglyphic,  to  me." 

In  another  instant,  yelling  like  demons,  the  Los 
dashed  upon  our  line.  By  accident,  it  may  be  pre 
sumed,  Captain  Crim's  rifle,  with  mine  and  a  dozen 
others,  were  discharged;  and  in  five  minutes  more  not 
a  living  red-skin  was  to  be  seen,  on  either  side  or  in 
front  of  us.  In  a  country  traversed  by  a  road  like  this, 
pursuit  was  of  course  vain,  although  it  was  attempted. 

It  ought,  however,  to  be  here  stated  that,  until  this 
occasion,  I  never  knew  what  a  capital  shot  our  leader 
was.  He  was  essentially  a  modest  man.  Nevertheless, 
his  bullet  had  crushed  through  the  skull  of  Lo,  "the 
poor  Indian,"  immediately  above  his  left  eye. 

Towards  night  we  pitched  our  camp  at  the  lower  end 
of  Honey  Lake  Valley,  some  three  miles  from  the  en 
trance  of  Susan  Eiver  into  the  lake.  Continuing  from 
this  spot  for  two  days,  towards  the  small  town  of 
Susanville,  and  fording  the  river  witli  our  horses,  we 
turned  them  out  to  graze  for  the  balance  of  the  day. 


90  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

It  was  while  seated  under  a  large  cotton  wood  tree, 
with  four  or  five  of  the  boys,  watching  our  stock,  that  I 
nearly  squared  accounts  with  Rascall.  No  apparent  re 
mains  of  the  mountain-fever  forced  me  to  rest  in  the 
wagon  at  the  close  of  a  day's  ride,  and  having  crossed 
the  stream  with  them,  while  keeping  a  watch  upon  the 
horses,  I  was  indulging  in  the  first  hour  or  two's  free 
conversation  I  had  with  any  of  them,  for  some  time. 
Suddenly,  Brighton  Bill,  who  had  hitherto  remained 
silent,  looked  up. 

"  'Ow  was  hit,  Mose  ? " 

"How  was  what?"  I  inquiringly  demanded  from 
him. 

"  Why,  'ow  was  hit  that  villin  Rascall  didn't  thrash 
you,  as  'e  did  Pigeon,  when  'e  got  hinto  your  wagon  ?" 

As  I  was  relating  a  somewhat  ludicrously-exaggerated 
account  of  the  somersault  performed  by  him,  when  he 
saw  my  six-shooter  peeping  out  from  beneath  the  cov 
ering  blanket,  Rascall,  who  had  crept  up  behind  the 
tree  under  whose  branches  \ve  were  sitting,  roared  out 
with  savage  vehemence : 

"  You're  a  lying  son  of  a " 

No  sooner  had  the  blackguardly  epithet  left  his  lips, 
than  I  was  on  my  feet.  My  pistol  was  at  once  in  my 
hand,  and  I  fired. 

Fortunately  for  him,  as  I  did  so,  Bill  struck  up  my 
hand,  and  the  ball  passed  over  his  head.  The  cowardly 
rufHan  took  to  his  heels,  very  much  as  if  he  fancied  the 
devil  himself  was  after  him. 

We  afterwards  found  that  he  skulked  round  the  town. 
Nor  did  he  join  the  train  again  until  it  reached  Moun 
tain  Meadows.  If  I  can  fairly  estimate  a  man's  thoughts 
by  the  expression  of  his  face,  I  should  candidly  say  that 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  91 

Captain  Crim's  features  betrayed  as  little  pleasure  at 
seeing  him  again,  as  I  undoubtedly  felt.  Tie  had  neces 
sarily  heard  of  this  occurrence,  although  he  never  in 
any  way  alluded  to  it,  when  chancing  to  speak  with  me. 

The  natural  excitement  of  this  affair  caused  a  relapse, 
and  it  became  apparent  that  1  must  have  some  positive 
rest  from  the  wear  and  tear  of  the  journey.  It  was 
consequently  decided  that  I  should  remain  at  Hoop's 
Ranche,  when  we  reached  that  place.  With  great  kind 
ness,  Brighton  Bill  decided  upon  accompanying  me 
there. 

But  at  this  time,  the  only  suit  of  clothes  I  possessed 
were  those  I  stood  up  in,  and  these  had  been,  by  travel, 
hardship,  and  exposure,  reduced  to  so  thoroughly  a  di 
lapidated  condition,  that  each  separate  garment  barely 
held  together.  In  addition  to  this,  they  were  worn  out 
both  at  the  knees  and  elbows.  While  I  was  disconso 
lately  thinking  of  this,  Bill  had  been  occupied  in  look 
ing  through  the  various  wagons.  Suddenly  I  heard  my 
name  pealing  joyously  from  his  lips. 

«  Hi !  Mose.     Look  'ere  !  " 

Yes  !  It  was,  unequivocally,  a  carpet-bag  which  be 
longed  to  me.  My  theatrical  wardrobe  had  departed 
from  me.  Very  probably  this  precious  waif  from  my 
baggage  contained  all  that  I  needed.  Judge  what  my 
disgust  must  have  been,  when,  on  opening  it,  I  drew 
forth  one  pair  of  corduroy  knee-breeches,  a  scarlet  waist 
coat,  and  a  long  frieze  coat.  It  was  nothing,  more  nor 
less,  than  the  complete  stage  costume  of  an  Irish  peasant, 
which  I  now  remembered  having  stowed  away  in  the 
carpet-bag,  for  the  sake  of  packing  my  more  reputable 
daily  clothes  where  they  might  lie  flat,  without  the  chance 
of  creasing  more  than  necessary. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

I  was  too  weak  to  swear,  and  far  too  depressed  in 
spirit  even  to  grumble.  These  clothes  were,  at  any 
rate,  sound  and  whole.  This  was  a  point  in  their  fa 
vor.  So  I  decided  upon  wearing  them. 

On  finding  myself  at  the  ranche,  I  was  a  decided 
object  of  curiosity  and  jeering  comment  to  those  with 
whom  I  was  about  to  make  my  temporary  home.  Hav 
ing  very  little  money,  and  being  still  too  weak  to  work, 
the  immediate  prospect  was  by  no  means  a  cheering 
one.  While  I  was  gazing  round  me,  Governor  Roop 
came  b}^,  and  seized  with  no  unnatural  wonder  at  the 
unusual  clothes  of  the  new  inhabitant,  paused  to  ques 
tion  me.  Had  I  been  in  good  health  at  the  time,  it  may 
be  presumed  that  my  tongue  would  readily  have  found 
words.  Now,  my  teeth  seemed  to  stick  together,  and 
my  lips  could  not  move.  It  appeared  to  me  I  was  like 
some  sailor  stranded  upon  a  strange  shore,  without  any 
help,  among  treacherous  and  jeeringly  inhospitable  na 
tives. 

As  this  thought  crossed  me,  a  kindly  hand  was  laid 
upon  my  shoulder,  and  a  cheery  voice  cried  out : 

"  My  boy  !  you  surely  did  not  'think  I  had  forgotten 
you?" 

It  was  Captain  Grim  who  spoke.  He  had  ridden  into 
the  town  for  the  express  purpose  of  recommending  me 
to  Governor  Hoop,  with  whom  he  was  an  old  acquaint 
ance.  It  would  be  useless,  as  well  as  a  gross  piece  of 
vanity,  were  I  here  to  relate  all  my  late  leader  said  of 
me.  It  will  be  enough  to  state  here,  his  wrords  were 
more  than  enough.  The  Governor  gave  him  his  ready 
assurance  that  I  should  want  for  nothing,  until  my  for 
mer  health  and  energy  were  completely  restored. 

Then,  turning  to  me,  he  bade  me  follow  him.     On 


"  On  finding  myself  at  the  ranche,  I  was  a  decided  object  of  curi 
osity  and  jeering1  comment  to  those  with  whom  I  was  about  to  make 
my  temporary  home. — Page  92. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  93 

arriving  at  the  only  hotel  in  the  place,  he  told  the  land 
lord  to  give  me  the  best  room  in  the  house,  and  allow 
me  to  remain  as  long  as  I  desired.  The  account  was  to 
he  charged  to  himself. 

It  would  he  impossible  for  me  to  keep  my  engage 
ment  in  San  Francisco,  on  the  tenth  of  the  coming  Sep 
tember.  Indeed,  I  had  requested  Captain  Grim,  before 
quitting  the  train,  to  explain  this  to  McGuire.  As  for 
my  dear  little  wife,  to  whom  I  had  written  so  hopefully 
from  St.  Joseph,  what  could  I  now  say  to  her  ?  I  dared 
not  write.  In  spite  of  Crim's  kindness,  and  the  even 
greater  kindness  of  the  Governor  to  a  perfect  stranger, 
that  afternoon  and  evening  were  passed  by  me  in  a 
condition  of  extreme  depression. 

With  the  next  morning,  a  happier  state  of  mind  came. 
For  the  first  time  in  many  weeks,  I  had  slept  in  a  decent 
bed.  It  was  certainly  not  a  palatial  hotel,  yet  my  break 
fast  was  a  better  one,  as  well  as  more  approximating  to 
civilization,  than  any  I  had  recently  enjoyed.  The  sun 
shone  through  the  curtainless  windows  in  an  inspiring 
way.  The  movement  of  the  life  around  me  was  differ 
ent  from  that  which  I  had  recently  experienced.  In 
fact,  all,  for  the  time,  seemed  new.  The  complete 
change  had  already  comparatively  reiuvigorated  me. 

From  this  moment  I  began  rapidly  to  recover  my 
health,  and  in  a  few  weeks  was  able  to  look  around  for 
such  employment  as  the  place  could  afford. 

Nothing  available  could  be  found. 

During  this  period,  I  had  frequently  met  with  miners 
and  conversed  with  them.  The  chances  and  struggles 
of  their  life  had  a  considerable  attraction  for  me.  At 
last  I  decided  upon  "  prospecting  "  for  gold.  Success 
in  this  appeared  to  offer  me  the  only  possibility  I  could 


94  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

see  of  repaying  Governor  Hoop  what  I  had  cost  him 
(his  kindness  to  me  it  would  be  impossible  to  repay) 
and  leaving  the  ranche,  like  an  honest  man.  After 
spending  some  two  weeks  with  little  or  no  success,  I,  at 
length,  established  what  I  believed  to  be  a  good  claim 
in  Light's  Canon. 

Honestly,  I  may  say  that  I  went  to  work  with  a  will. 
Fortune,  however,  was  long  in  coming.  For  many 
weeks,  I  made  merely  enough  from  my  claim  to  whet 
my  appetite  for  more. 

Perseverance  however  generally  pays.  At  last  I  made 
more  than  enough  to  pay  my  debts.  A  few  days  after 
accomplishing  this,  I  had  cancelled  my  debt  to  him  who 
had  so  kindly  befriended  me.  Then,  as  the  winter  had 
begun  somewhat  earlier  than  usual,  with  many  thanks 

O  v 

to  the  Governor,  I  located  in  Snsanville,  where  I 
decided  to  remain  until  the  spring. 

The  truth  is,  I  had  already  tasted  the  keenest  excite 
ment  I  had  yet  found  in  life,  because  it  is  the  most  fluc 
tuating  and  uncertain.  The  chances  in  gold-prospect 
ing  and  gold-digging  are  so  variable,  that  I  defy  any 
young  man  who  has  once  tempted  them,  readily  to  put 
them  from  him.  The  poor  devil  who  has  been  at  it 
for  months,  and  gained  merely  enough  to  sustain  his 
existence,  may,  in  a  single  afternoon,  find  his  toil  mu 
nificently  rewarded.  Like  the  gambler,  he  stakes.  It  is 
not  money,  so  much  as  life  and  work.  A  single  hour 
may  possibly  give  him  a  thousand-fold  the  value  of 
that  which  he,  perchance,  considers  an  almost  worthless 
stake. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

AFTER  GOLD — THE  PAH-UTE  AND  WASHO  INDIANS — RUNNING  OFF 
STOCK — PAYING  TRIBUTE — THE  OATH  OF  VENGEANCE — SOME 
SILVER  BULLETS — "KNOWING  DEM  VELLERS" — AN  UN- 
GIRTHED  SADDLE — THE  UNBALANCED  ACCOUNT — RECRUIT 
ING — THE  BUCKSKIN  RANGERS — A  LITTLE  BIOGRAPHY — MY 
NEW  HORSE — A  STORM  IN  THE  MOUNTAINS — UNINTENTIONAL 
FIRING — OUT  OF  THE  TEMPEST. 

IT  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  detail  the  events  of  my 
campaign  for  gold  during  the  following  year  and  a  half. 
At  this  moment,  wealth  seemed  within  my  grasp,  and 
in  the  next  I  might  be  mourning  over  or  cursing  my  un 
realized  hopes.  However,  in  1857,  wearied  out  with  my 
apparently  vain  battle  with  Fortune,  chance  called  me 
to  another  field  of  adventure. 

There  were  in  that  year,  all  told,  very  certainly  no 
more  than  seventy  or  seventy-five  persons  living  in  the 
Valley  of  Honey  Lake.  Of  these,  the  larger  proportion 
were  engaged  in  ranching  and  stock-raising.  Among 
them,  the  leading  men  were,  after  Governor  Hoop,  Peter 
Lassen,  W.  T.  C.  Elliott,  more  familiarly  known  as  Ruff 
Elliott,  the  Bass  Boys,  David  Titherington,  Tom  Har 
vey,  the  Spencers,  Captain  W.  Hill  Naileigh,  David 
Blanchard,  Albert  Smith,  Orlando  Streschley,  Ed  Mul- 
rooney,  Laninger,  Storff,  Watson,  Kingsberry,  Doc. 
Slater,  and  a  few  others. 

At  this  time,  the  "Washo  and  Pah-ute  Indians  were  in 
the  neighborhood.  Occasionally,  they  appeared  quite 
friendly,  and  would  do  a  spell  of  work  for  the  settlers, 


96  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

taking  provisions  in  payment  for  such  labor  as  they 
might  choose  to  do. 

No  sooner,  however,  had  they  a  good  supply  on  hand 
than  they  would  indulge  in  their  natural  propensity  for 
stealing  stock,  frequently  running  off  thirty  or  forty 
head  of  cattle  at  a  time.  It  made  no  difference  to 
them  whether  these  were  working  oxen  or  milch  cows,  so 
long  as  they  had  horns.  As  none  of  the  settlers  were 
wealthy  men,  this  unscrupulous  appetite  for  marauding 
upon  their  stock  was  exceedingly  disgusting.  Treaty 
after  treaty  had  been  made  with  the  Indians,  and  were 
equally  worthless,  whenever  they  had  a  fair  show  for 
stealing  cattle  with  the  chance  of  escaping  retributive 
justice. 

At  length,  the  matter  came  to  a  head.  The  red  rob 
bers  had  run  off  nearly  the  whole  of  the  stock  belonging 
to  a  particular  friend  of  mine.  The  nearest  neighbors 
held  an  immediate  meeting  and  determined,  if  possible, 
upon  tracking  the  rascals  and  bringing  them  to  book. 

Arming  ourselves,  we*  started  at  once  in  pursuit. 
Striking  their  trail,  which  was  very  plain,  we  continued 
after  them  for  the  best  part  of  two  days. 

In  the  noon  of  the  second  day,  discovering  that  they 
were  pursued,  the  Indians  resorted  to  the  cowardly  ex 
pedient  of  killing  the  whole  of  the  cattle.  They  cut 
open  their  sides,  and  let  out  their  intestines,  afterwards 
scaling  the  side  of  the  mountain,  to  the  north-east  of 
the  valley  in  which  we  had  sighted  them. 

It  was  a  lamentably  pitiable  spectacle  to  see  the  poor 
brutes  moaning  their  moan  of  death,  with  their  glazing 
eyes  turned  upon  those  who  had  come  too  late  to  save 
them. 

Out  of  gun-shot,  the  Fah-utes — for  the  cruel  scoundrels 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  97 

belonged  to  this  tribe — taunted  ns  in  no  very  heroic  style. 
Tins  was  effected  by  extending  their  hands  in  front  of 
their  noses,  as  well  as  by  a  most  expressive  and  insulting 
pantomimic  slap  on  a  very  significant  portion  of  their 
bodies.  Blackguardism  seems  confined  to  no  special 
race  or  country.  So,  at  least,  it  appears  to  me. 

After  a  brief  council  of  war,  pursuit  was  decided 
upon,  and  we  began  to  mount  the  precipice.  Harry 
.Arnold  was  with  me,  and  we  managed  to  delude  the 
Indians  into  the  belief  that  they  were  beyond  the  range 
of  our  rifles,  by  letting  the  few  shots  we  considered  it 
advisable  to  fire,  fall  short  of  them.  This  ruse  tempted 
one  of  them  on  an  eminence  at  some  distance,  to  repeat 
his  aggravating  gesture. 

"  I  believe  I  can  pick  that  scamp  off  with  my  old 
Kentucky  rifle,  Harry  !  " 

"  He's  more  than  three  hundred  and  fifty  yards  off, 
Mose!" 

"  I  don't  think  he  is." 

"  If  any  man  can  fetch  him,  you  or  I  can.  It's  worth 
trying." 

He  had  scarcely  concluded  when  the  crack  of  my  rifle 
was  heard. 

The  Pah-ute,  who  had  been  standing  up  in  a  more  de 
fiantly  noble  position  than  previously,  uttered  a  loud 
yell,  bounding  into  the  air  and  rolling  over  the  edge  of 
the  cliff,  on  to  the  rocks  below. 

His  mashed  and  mangled  body  furnished  me  with  his 
scalp.  The  shot,  however,  fair  as  it  was,  had  been  an 
ill-advised  one.  Its  result  was,  that  when  we  reached 
the  bluff  on  which  he  had  been  standing,  not  another  of 
the  red  scoundrels  was  visible.  Nor  did  any  of  them 
show  themselves  after  this,  even  at  double  the  distance 
5 


98  BUCKSKIN    HOSE. 

which  had  tempted  him  to  indulge  in  such  an  insulting 
gesticulation. 

On  returning  home,  we  found  the  whole  of  the  valley, 
or,  rather,  those  of  its  inhabitants  who  had  not  formed 
part  of  our  party,  in  a  state  of  intense  excitement.  The 
Indians  had  threatened  a  general  massacre  of  the  whites 
in  it,  if  they  refused  immediately  to  leave  it.  It  may 
be  readily  imagined,  the  death  of  the  Pah-ute  brave  was 
ill -adapted  to  mollify  such  a  determination.  Under 
these  circumstances,  it  was  decided,  should  the  affair 
come  to  the  worst,  on  giving  the  red-skins  as  warm  a  re 
ception  as  was  in  our  power.  But,  in  the  meantime, 
Peter  Lassen  and  one  or  two  of  the  older  settlers,  with 
Governor  Hoop,  were  despatched  to  Pyramid  Lake  to 
hold  a  conference  with  Win-a-muc-ca,  the  Pah-ute  chief, 
and,  if  they  could  do  so,  make  a  treaty  with  him. 

This  was  effected.  We  had  to  give  a  certain  number 
of  head  of  cattle,  several  thousand  pounds  of  flour, 
sugar,  and  tobacco,  as  well  as  many  other  small  articles, 
in  order  to  remain  unmolested.  It -was  neither  more 
nor  less  than  tribute. 

It  is  said  that  years  bring  wisdom.  In  any  case  Age 
had  decided  against  an  Indian  war  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Honey  Lake  Yalley.  Youth  necessarily  had  to  sub 
mit. 

The  demands  of  this  treaty  were  a  severe  drain  upon 
the  settlement,  the  more  especially  as  the  winter  set  in 
early,  with  unusual  severity.  We  were  for  more  than 
four  months  shut  in  from  the  outer  world,  not  even  be 
ing  able  to  reach  Indian  Valley,  where  we  had  been  ac 
customed  to  have  our  wheat  ground.  It  was  ground 
during  this  time  in  a  coffee-mill,  and  being  out  of  coffee, 
we  were  compelled  to  use  roasted  barley  as  a  substitute. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSB.  99 

In  addition  to  this,  we  had  robbed  ourselves  of  blankets 
to  supply  the  Indians ;  and  in  this  comparatively  desti 
tute  condition,  it  was  at  times  a  difficult  matter  to  sup 
ply  the  wants  of  the  women  and  children. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  following  year  the  Indians 
again  became  troublesome,  until,  in  1859,  another  treaty 
was  patched  up  .with  them. 

During  this  period  one  of  the  most  popular  and  esti 
mable  men  in  the  settlement,  named  Painter,  was  shot 
by  a  party  of  Pah-utes,  who  were  in  ambush  at  the  head 
of  Surprise  Valley.  Intelligence  of  this  was  brought 
us,  by  two  or  three  companions  who  had  been  with 
him. 

Painter's  brother  Ben  applied  to  myself  and  some 
others  to  accompany  him  and  bury  the  body.  When 
we  reached  the  spot,  we  found  it  cut  and  mutilated  in 
the  most  frightful  manner.  Ben,  with  the  rest  of  us, 
kneeling  beside  it,  took  a  solemn  oath  to  be  avenged, 
whenever  the  opportunity  was  afforded  us.  Having 
then  buried  the  body,  we  named  the  valley  Painter's 
Canon.  It  holds  this  name  to  the  present  day. 

In  the  fall  of  the  same  year,  a  report  spread  that  a 
man  called  Foreman  had  struck  a  valuable  silver-mine 
in  the  vicinity  of  Black  Rock.  This  was  the  same 
place,  in  which  one  of  the  settlers  had  discovered  a  large 
lump  of  silver  ore.  His  name  was  Harding.  Being 
on  a  limiting  expedition  at  the  time,  and  out  of  lead, 
he  had  run  it  into  bullets. 

A  tolerable  degree  of  excitement  was  caused  amongst 
us,  by  the  confirmation  of  previous  suppositions,  we  pre 
sumed  was  thus  given.  But  Black  Rock  was  more  than 
a  hundred  and  twenty  miles  beyond  Susanville,  on  the 
north-west  side  of  Queen's  River  Desert.  Its  distance 


100  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

prevented  many  from  going  to  prospect  the  place. 
However,  after  two  or  three  days'  talk  over  the  matter, 
old  Pete  Lassen,  with  a  man  named  Clapp,  myself,  and 
two  other  of  the  boys,  determined  upon  verifying  this 
report.  On  the  following  day,  therefore,  striking  the 
old  Emigrant  Road,  and  continuing  it  as  far  as  Granite 
Creek,  our  little  party  followed  the  Granite  range  of 
mountains  up  to  Stove-pipe  Springs.  Thence,  we 
crossed  them  to  the  Black  Rock  range.  On  the  whole 
of  the  way,  recently,  we  had  encountered  wandering 
Indians.  They  had  seemed  very  friendly.  We  were, 
however,  in  a  section  of  the  country  which  the  red-skins 
evidently  considered  their  rightful  property. 

The  place  of  encampment  this  night,  selected  by 
Uncle  Peter,  was  very  unfavorably  situated.  But  when 
I  advised  him  to  allow  me  to  select  a  more  defensible 
location,  on  higher  ground  than  that  adjoining  the  small 
creek  which  he  had  chosen,  the  old  German  was  obstin 
ate. 

"  Tamn  it,  my  poy  !  Don't  you  'spose  I  know  dem 
vellers.  Dey  von't  hurt  old  Pete.  You  must  give 
dem  some  crub,  my  poy !  Dat  ish  all  dey  vants." 

"That  may  be,  Uncle  Peter,"  I  replied;  "but  I 
wouldn't  trust  the  last  three  or  four  lots  of  red  devils 
we  have  met,  out  of  the  range  of  my  rifle." 

Just  at  this  moment  a  party  of  some  dozen  Indians 
approached  the  little  camp,  and  the  peaceful  Peter  mo 
tioning  them  with  his  hand,  shouted  out : 

"  Comes  t'here ! " 

Understanding  his  inviting  action,  if  not  his  words, 
they  flocked  around  him.  The  old  Dutchman  gave 
them  some  bread,  meat,  and  tobacco.  Before  they  left 
us,  he  added  to  these  things  some  powder  and  caps. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  101 

"  A  very  dangerous  gift,"  as  I  grumbled  out  in  a  low 
tone  of  voice. 

When,  after  having  got  all  they  could,  they  quitted 
us,  I  expressed  my  wish  to  Uncle  Pete  to  stand  on 
guard  during  the  night. 

"  Don't  be  a  tamned  vool ! "  was  his  reply.  "  I  dink 
you  ar'  scared  of  dem  Injins.  If  you  vants,  go  on  de 
hill,  and  leaff  old  Pete  by  himself.  I  hafe  no  vear." 

Irritated  by  his  answer,  I  blurted  out : 

"  As  you  are  determined  to  stay  here,  Uncle  Peter, 
we'll  not  leave  you." 

But  although,  shortly  after,  the  rest  who  were  with 
him  followed  the  old  Dutchman's  example,  and  after  a 
smoke — the  usual  night-cap  of  the  scout  or  trapper, 
spread  out  their  blankets  and  prepared  for  rest,  I  was 
unable  to  do  so.  The  unerring  presentiment,  which, 
without  inspiring  terror,  tells  us  to  be  prepared  for 
danger  ahead,  kept  me  on  the  watch.  It  was,  therefore, 
at  an  early  hour  I  aroused  the  camp. 

"  I'll  pet,"  exclaimed  the  Dutchman,  wrathful  at 
what  he  considered  his  untimely  wakening,  turning  to 
Clapp,  "  dat  Mose  vas  not  sleep  all  night." 

"  I  tell  you,"  was  my  sharp  reply,  "  we  had  better  get 
out  of  this  place,  cursed  quickly  !  " 

All  of  them,  the  old  man  excepted,  turned  out.  In 
spite  of  Clapp's  remonstrances,  he,  however,  re-rolling 
himself  in  his  blanket,  petulantly  exclaimed  : 

"  Yell !  I  shleeps,  some  more." 

It  was  scarcely  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after  this,  when 
we  were  iired  upon  from  the  craggy  rocks  which  com 
manded  our  position.  This  volley  slaughtered  two  of 
our  doomed  band.  "With  very  pardonable  anger,  al 
though  I  have  since  regretted  this  ebullition  of  temper, 


102  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

I  administered  a  sharp  kick  to  the  form  of  Uncle  Peter, 
who  was  rolling  out  of  his  blankets. 

"  Get  up,  at  once,"  I  sung  out.  "  I  suppose  you'll 
follow  my  advice,  now." 

u  Dey  von't  hurt  old  Pete,"  he  responded,  "  so  I  vill 
get  my  plankets." 

Thoroughly  out  of  patience  with  him,  I  leaped  into 
my  saddle,  and  it  was  none  too  soon.  Another  volley 
took  down  Clapp,  who  was  just  mounting.  Thinking, 
at  last,  there  might  be  some  danger,  the  Dutchman 
made  a  spring  for  Clapp's  horse.  In  consequence  of 
the  saddle  not  being  properly  girthed,  it  slid  round  with 
him,  and  he  fell  to  the  ground.  Before  he  could  spring 
to  his  feet,  the  concealed  Indians  had  put  two  bullets 
through  his  body.  Then,  quitting  their  hiding-place, 
they  rushed  upon  me.  One  ball  from  my  rifle  settled 
the  foremost  of  them.  With  a  vigorous  thrust  from 
my  heels  to  the  flanks  of  the  horse  1  was  mounted  on,  I 
shook  out  my  bridle  and  fled,  in  the  midst  of  a  perfect 
shower  of  bullets  and  arrows.  All  but  one  of  the  last 
missed  me.  This  inflicted  a  scalp-wound,  and  for  a 
moment  I  reeled  in  my  saddle. 

Turning  immediately  after,  I  once  more  raised  my 
rifle,  and  had  the  satisfaction  of  wiping  out  one  more  In 
dian  life,  as  a  partial  payment  for  the  four  they  had 
taken. 

Fairly  out  of  danger  of  pursuit,  I  groaned  over  the 
death  of  Peter  Lassen  and  my  three  companions. 

No  longer,  my  anger  (the  results  had  amply  proved 
its  justice)  reproached  him  for  the  obstinate  hardihood 
with  which  he  had  so  untowardly  ended  our  silver- 
hunting  expedition. 

Nevertheless,  I  was  in  no  position  to  indulge  either  in 


"  The  monument  erected  to  Peter  Lassen  in  Honey  Lake  Valley." 
-Page  103. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  103 

wrath  or  sorrow.  My  present  course  was  to  be  deter 
mined  on.  After  a  brief  counsel  with  myself,  I  decided 
on  continuing  my  flight  through  that  part  of  the  country 
settlers  called  the  Desert.  Few  trees  or  rising  hills 
marked  this.  Consequently  I  should  here  have  less 
chance  of  risking  a  second  Indian  ambuscade.  In 
deed,  on  approaching  Granite  Creek,  surrounding  in 
dications  betrayed  the  presence  of  red-skins  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  although  in  want  of  water  for  my 
self  and  the  animal  I  was  mounted  on,  I  preferred 
taking  my  chances  on  the  comparatively  barren  plain. 

Providentially,  about  nightfall  I  reached  a  spring. 
Here  I  dismounted,  and  gave  my  horse  some  two  hours' 
rest. 

Remounting,  I  then  continued  my  way,  piloting  my 
self  by  the  stars,  as  a  fugitive  on  the  Plains  has  fre 
quently  to  do,  if,  as  in  the  present  case,  although  there 
was  no  moon,  the  night  is  clear  enough  to  afford  such  a 
series  of  guide-posts  to  the  wanderer. 

Sunrise  brought  me  to  Smoke  Creek.  After  another 
short  rest,  I  again  pulled  out  for  Susanville. 

The  last  fifty  miles  was  hard  work  for  the  worn-out 
and  jaded  animal,  whose  enduring  bottom  had  so  largely 
contributed  to  my  escape. 

All  in  Susanville  and  around  it  were  struck  with 
horror,  when  I  detailed  the  circumstances  of  the 
slaughter,  from  which  I  was  the  sole  survivor.  A  large 
portion  of  the  prominent  settlers,  amongst  which  Gov 
ernor  Hoop  was  the  most  influential,  coincided  with  me 
in  denouncing  all  further  treaties  with  the  treacherous 
Indians,  whether  Pah-utes  or  of  any  other  tribe. 

However,  some  who  had  families,  and  were  not  un 
reasonably  apprehensive  for  their  safety  in  the  event  of 


104  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

a  continuous  struggle,  warmly  opposed  our  views.  At 
this  time,  they  believed  that  the  red-skins  around  us 
numbered  some  eight  or  ten  thousand. 

In  the  face  of  their  opposition,  with  the  co-operation 
of  Governor  Hoop,  I  determined  upon  a  plan  of  action. 

The  first  man  I  spoke  to  about  joining  me  was  Harry 
Arnold.  He  was  a  good  shot,  and  a  man  of  dauntless 
courage — not  knowing  what  an  impossibility  might  be. 
Not  only  did  he  consent  to  work  with  me,  but  gave  me 
invaluable  assistance  in  drawing  together  such  tough 
and  determined  fellows  as  each  of  us  could  rely  upon. 
Amongst  these  was  Ben  Painter,  Luther  Spencer,  David 
Blanchard,  my  old  friend  Brighton  Bill,  Butch'  Has- 
brouck,  and  a  number  of  others,  as  good  men  as  ever 
rammed  a  ball  down  a  rifle.  In  all,  on  the  succeeding 
day,  when  we  compared  notes,  we  found  twenty-four 
men  had  signed  the  roll,  and  pledged  themselves  to 
readiness  at  twenty  minutes'  notice.  Both  agreeing 
these  were  enough,  we  met  on  the  following  day  in 
Willow  Creek  Valley,  some  fourteen  to  sixteen  miles 
north  of  Susanvillej  where  we  completed  our  organiza 
tion.  The  company  was  to  take  the  name  of  the  BUCK 
SKIN  RANGEKS,  of  which  I  was  to  be  the  captain. 
Harry  Arnold  and  Ben  Painter  were  chosen  as  my 
first  and  second  lieutenants,  while  every  one  else  was 
to  act  as  an  orderly  sergeant,  as  well  as  his  own  com 
missary.  Our  agreement  was  that  we  should  all  dress 
in  buckskin,  at  our  own  expense.  Indeed,  every  man 
was  to  furnish  his  entire  fit-out,  complete  for  active 
service. 

It  will  afterwards  be  seen,  what  this  active  service 
actually  meant. 

The  next  tiling  we  had  to  do,  was  to  select  our  horses. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  105 

Jack  Bird,  settled  at  the  lower  end  of  Honey  Lake, 
owned  a  large  stock.  Besides  presenting  me  with  one 
of  his  own  special  favorites,  to  which  he  had  given  the 
name  of  the  Tipton  Slasher,  he  contributed  to  mount 
ing  the  Rangers,  most  liberally. 

The  animal  he  gave  me  was  a  dapple  iron-gray,  partly 
of  Spanish  stock,  with  fine  clean  limbs,  and  of  great 
speed  and  endurance.  When  Jack  gave  it  to  me,  he 
said : 

"  Look  here,  Mose !  if  you  ever  let  a  darned  red-skin 
catch  you,  it  will  be  when  you  are  not  on  Tip's  back." 

So  much  for  the  horse.     Now,  for  myself. 

Here  was  another  change  in  my  life.  Circus-rider, 
pop-corn  merchant,  actor,  detective,  enlisted  in  an  emi 
grant-train,  gold-digger,  and  engaged  with  stock,  I  was 
now  a  ranger,  and  about  to  start  in  a  new  avocation. 
Hitherto,  the  red  men  I  had  come  across  had  been  look 
ing  after  me  and  mine.  Now,  I  was  about  to  look  after 
them. 

The  wild,  dense  forest,  the  gigantic  mountains,  the 
untrodden  wilderness,  sweeping  beneath  the  sky  with  its 
varying  swell,  the  unbroken  waste  and  desert  with  the 
savage  dwellers  in  it,  whose  crimson  hands  were  against 
all  civilization  and  gory  with  the  uncounted  murders 
of  the  white  man,  were  now  to  furnish  me  with  all  the 
delight  my  nature  could  crave  from  a  life  of  constant 
excitement.  If  I  thought  of  my  home  and  my  friends, 
hundreds  upon  Hundreds  of  miles  away  from  me,  I  fear, 
at  this  time,  it  was  with  110  inconsolable  feelings  of  re 
gret.  In  truth,  I  was  about  to  become  the  veritable 
pioneer  and  protector  of  the  scarcely-rooted  civilization 
in  which  my  lot  had  lately  been  cast.  What  chance 
was  there  I  could  over-much  think  of  the  past,  in  the  ab- 


106  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

solute  toil  and  the  positive  demand  for  vital  activity  of 
the  present  ? 

I  was  now  about  twenty-four  years  of  age.  My  frame 
always  promising  strength,  had  become  robust  and  pow 
erful.  Nature  had  gifted  me  with  a  sufficiently  good 
constitution,  as  well  as  some  considerable  amount  of  en 
ergy.  In  addition  to  this,  I  possessed  self-confidence 
enough  to  render  me  equal  to  the  position  in  which  fort 
une  and  adventure  had  placed  me. 

By  the  bye,  it  may  be  as  well  for  me  here  to  say  a 
few  wrords  respecting  Jack  Bird,  who  was  commonly 
called  by  his  acquaintances  "  the  "  Captain. 

About  fifty-five  years  of  age,  and  rather  above  the 
medium  height,  he  possessed  a  powerful  frame.  Of 
dark  complexion,  and  writh  piercing  hazel  eyes;  he  was  a 
Mississipian,  or,  as  he  was  used  to  say,  he  "  came  from 
old  Massisip."  In  a  word,  a  native,  as  he  himself  told 
me,  of  Arkansas,  he  was  a  splendid  specimen  of  the 
class  of  men  raised  between  civilized  life  and  the  ex 
treme  frontier  of  that  civilization.  Thus  he  had  been 
made  a  backwoodsman  by  nature  and  predisposition,  as 
well  as  necessity.  With  an  active  and  energetic  mind, 
he  had  carved  out  for  himself  in  this  wild  country,  a 
comparative  fortune. 

Had  he  been  reared  in  New  York  State,  he  might 
have  grown  to  the  proportions  of  a  Yanderbilt. 

As,  however,  he  had  neither  ferries  to  cross,  nor  rail 
ways  to  layout,  lie  occupied  himself  in  traversing  moun 
tains,  and  in  creating  settlements.  Not  having  legislat 
ures  to  buy  np,  his  restless  energy  had  occupied  itself 
in  the  control  of  savage  life.  An.  emigrant  to  Califor 
nia  in  1849,  he  had  engaged  at  first  in  mining.  After 
wards,  he  went  into  stock-raising.  It  had  been  in  1857 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  107 

that  he  settled  on  the  boundaries  of  Honey  Lake.  Here 
he  remained,  until  the  close  of  the  late  war.  Then,  he 
decided  upon  returning  for  a  brief  period  to  his  old 
homestead.  He  was,  however,  doomed  never  to  reach 
it.  Starting  overland  by  stage,  he  was  slaughtered,  with 
the  driver  and  other  of  the  passengers,  by  the  Indians, 
and  never  reached  the  place  of  his  birth.  He  was  one 
of  the  far  too  numerous  victims,  thrust  forward  by  the 
restless  progress  of  the  day,  in  the  face  of  the  red  sav 
ages,  who  have  up  to  the  present  time  been  sheltered 
under  the  protecting  aegis  of  our  Government.  A  no 
bler,  kinder-hearted,  and  franker  man,  perhaps,  I  have 
never  met  with. 

It  was  somewhat  previous  to  the  formation  of  the 
Buckskin  Rangers,  to  whose  efficiency  he  had  so  largely 
and  liberally  contributed,  that  new  silver-mines  had 
been  discovered,  near  what  is  now  known  as  Virginia 
City,  as  well  as  in  Gold  Hill  near  Carson  City,  in 
Nevada.  This  discovery  had  created  considerable  ex 
citement,  and  a  large  number  of  fortune-seekers  were 
already  flocking  to  the  mines.  The  Indians,  however, 
were  quite  as  active  as  the  searchers  after  wealth. 
Scarcely  a  day  passed  which  was  unmarked  by  the 
murder  of  some  poor  prospector,  in  that  vicinity. 

Their  scalped  remains  invariably  attested  the  means 
by  which  they  had  met  their  death. 

The  red-skins  seemed  almost  as  ubiquitous  as  devils. 
Wherever  they  passed,  the  trail  of  blood  was  left  behind 
them. 

In  order  to  put  a  stop  to  their  murderous  depreda 
tions,  Major  Ormsby,  at  that  period,  well  known  through 
out  the  country,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Carson  City, 
formed  a  company.  Another  smaller  company,  which 


108  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

had  organized  in  Virginia  Cit}r,  for  the  same  purpose, 
and  already  started  out  for  the  Pyramid  Mountains,  near 
the  Reservation,  had  also  joined  him.  Altogether,  this 
party  numbered  something  over  one  hundred  and  fifty 
men. 

Large  as  this  body  was,  it  was  destined  to  meet  with 
ill-luck,  or,  probably,  1  should  give  it  a  much  graver 
name. 

Finding  that  the  Indians  had  retreated  into  the 
mountains,  Ormsby  determined  on  advancing  upon 
them,  and  driving  them  from  their  stronghold. 

In  doing  so,  he  probably  counted  upon  punishing 
them  with  a  severity,  which  should  free  the  neighbor 
hood  for  some  length  of  time  from  their  murderous 
presence. 

Whether  it  arose  from  his  ignorance  of  the  mode  of 
warfare  pursued  by  the  red-skins,  or  from  his  over-con 
fidence  in  his  own  numbers,  it  would  be  impossible  now 
to  determine.  All  I  know  is,  that  Orrnsby's  command 
was  met  with  a  terrific  fire,  which  drove  them  back. 

Whilst  they  were  in  full  retreat,  their  enemies  broke 
from  their  cover,  and  created  a  thorough  panic  in  theii 
ranks. 

This  resulted  in  a  frightful  disaster.  Out  of  the 
hundred  and  fifty  men,  barely  nineteen  made  theii 
escape,  the  Major  himself  being  among  the  slain. 

The  news  of  this  terrific  slaughter  spread  from  settle 
ment  to  settlement  in  the  vicinity,  like  wildfire.  But, 
previously,  having  heard  of  Major  Crm£~oy's  intended 
movement,  the  Rangers  had  decided  upon  lending  him 
a  helping  hand.  I  had  consequently  moved  with  them 
from  Honey  Lake,  upon  the  opposite  side  of  Pyramid 
Mountains.  On  our  way  there,  we  had  picked  up  a 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  109 

considerable  number  of  volunteers,  and  counted  some 
forty-five  or  fifty  men  in  all.  On  reaching  the  base  of 
the  mountains,  I  found  that  it  would  be  impossible  to 
use  our  horses  in  any  farther  advance.  We  conse 
quently  decided  upon  leaving  our  four-footed  compan 
ions,  and  I  detailed  half  a  dozen  of  our  party  to  look 
after  their  safety. 

After  carefully  examining  our  weapons,  we  then 
cautiously  commenced  ascending  the  rocky  declivity. 

Scarcely  had  we  counted  upon  the  almost  immediate 
result  of  this  step.  Some  three  quarters  of  an  hour 
after,  we  entered  on  a  heavy  mist  or  fog,  which  grad 
ually  became  thicker  and  more  dense,  until  it  almost 
i'elt  like  a  wet  and  sodden  blanket,  actually  saturating 
us  to  the  skin. 

Suddenly,  from  the  midst  of  this  sheet  of  gloom, 
burst  a  spear  of  lightning.  No !  not  a  spear.  It  was, 
or  seemed  to  be,  one  broad  sheet  of  flame,  which  actually 
enveloped  us,  for  the  moment,  blinding  our  eyes,  and 
rendering  us  unable  to  see  any  of  our  companions. 

This  flash  was  followed  by  another  and  another,  with 
incredible  rapidity,  until  their  scathing  glow  seemed 
almost  continuous,  while  the  roll  of  the  unintermittent 
thunder  made  the  mountain-side  tremble  beneath  our 
feet. 

By  the  first  effect  of  this  fearful  storm,  all  our  rifles 
had  been  instantly  and  involuntarily  discharged.  Stal 
wart  men,  who  would  have  kept  their  feet  in  any 
ordinary  commotion  of  the  elements,  were  prostrated  on 
the  earth.  Brave  men,  who  had  faced  danger  of  almost 
every  description,  trembled  like  the  veriest  children. 
Their  bronzed  cheeks  whitened  with  fear,  and  when 
able  to  stand,  their  knees  quivered  under  them  with 


110  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

terror.  Perhaps  none  of  us  expected  to  escape  from 
that  shroud  of  living  light  alive.  Yery  certainly  I  did 
not,  and  am  not  ashamed  to  own,  that,  in  the  midst  of 
the  rolling  thunder,  a  cry  to  God  for  mercy,  which  none 
but  the  Almighty  One  Himself  could  possibly  have 
heard,  broke  from  my  panting  lips. 

Possibly,  that  unpremeditated  appeal  was  listened  to. 
Soon  after  the  flashes  relaxed  their  continuity,  and  in  its 
occasional  pauses  the  thunder  might  have  allowed  the 
voice  of  any  who  had  spoken  to  be  heard.  Gradually, 
the  tempest  passed  away,  and  I  heard  a  rough  male 
voice  say : 

"  The  Lord  be  thanked ! " 

There  was,  in  all  probability,  not  one  of  us,  un-church- 
going  and  reckless  as  we  had  all  for  many  years  been, 
who  did  not,  within  his  own  heart,  re-echo  that  solitary 
thanksgiving. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SCOUTING  AND  ITS  RESULTS— CAUGHT  NAPPING— FRANTIC  WITH 
TERROR — "Wno  HAVE  BEEN  TRIMMED  so  NEATLY" — MY 
FAT  FRIEND  IN  A  PICKLE — PERSPIRATION  AND  BULLETS — THE 
REQUEST  TO  "SWAP"  TREES — VIRTUE  ITS  OWN  REWARD — 
HIGH  TREASON  TO  UNCLE  SAM — GOING  OUT  FOR  GAME — 
AN  UNPLEASANT  MEETING — THE  TUSSLE  FOR  LIFE— PUT 
TING  AN  END  TO  AN  ORATION — UA  TUFF  'UN." 

ORDERS  were  shortly  after  given  to  continue  the  as 
cent,  and  in  a  sufficiently  brief  space  of  time,  we  had 
mounted  above  the  belt  of  dark  clouds,  which  were  now 
drifting  along  the  mountain-side  beneath  us,  into  a  fresh 
and  warm  sunshine. 

The  revulsion  in  our  feelings  was  almost  instantane 
ous.  Those  who  had  quaked  before,  were  now  inclined 
to  jeer  at  their  own  fright.  Lips  that  had  been  whit 
ened  with  terror  were  now  actually  laughing.  Indeed, 
I  much  doubt  whether  he,  whose  involuntary  audible 
piety  had  announced  its  feelings  a  few  moments  since, 
would  have  thanked  any  of  us  for  reminding  him  of 
the  exclamation.  Very  certainly,  none  of  us  did.  We 
had,  at  any  rate,  the  grace,  not,  in  our  present  security, 
to  scoff  at  the  thanks  in  which  we  had  so  cordially  al 
though  quietly  participated. 

When  we  were  thoroughly  above  the  heavily  wet 
mass  of  cloud,  we  paused  to  rest  and  dry  our  clothing. 

Then,  having  examined  our  weapons  and  reloaded 
them,  we  continued  our  progress  in  the  direction  in 
which  it  was  supposed  the  Indians  were  to  be  found. 


112  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

Night  at  last  overtook  us,  and  orders  were  given  for 
camping.  After  a  brief  sleep  of  some  four  Lours,  with 
Harry  Arnold,  Butch'  Hasbrouck,  and  Brighton  Bill,  I 
started  out  to  find  the  position  of  the  Indians.  After 
we  had  moved  in  almost  complete  silence  for  a  distance 
of  some  three  miles,  the  faint  light  of  their  camp-fires 
might  be  seen  by  us.  Touching  Butch'  and  Bill,  I  in  a 
whisper  ordered  both  of  them  to  remain  where  we  then 
stood,  and  with  Arnold  crept  quietly  in  the  direction  of 
the  dying  embers.  Here,  in  their  presumed  security, 
were  slumbering  the  men  who  had  slain  nearly  the  whole 
of  Major  Ormsby's  party. 

As  yet,  we  were  unaware  of  this  fact,  and  I  had  only 
the  knowledge  of  old  Pete's  death,  and  those  of  my 
other  three  companions,  to  square  with  the  red  rascals, 
whether  they  had  any  hand  in  that  affair  or  not. 

In  consequence  of  this,  I  and  Harry  took  a  good  sur 
vey  of  their  situation,  and,  as  noiselessly  as  we  had  ap 
proached  it,  returned  to  our  own  camp,  taking  Butch' 
and  Brighton  Bill  with  us,  on  our  way.  There  we 
speedily  aroused  all  the  boys,  and  telling  them  we  had 
spotted  the  game,  bade  them  make  ready.  The  night 
was  clear  and  cold,  although  cloudy  overhead,  and  in  five 
minutes  more  we  were  upon  our  way,  with  an  imperative 
injunction,  upon  my  part,  of  perfect  silence.  This  was 
perhaps  needless,  as  few  of  the  Hangers  or  those  who  had 
volunteered  with  us  were  novices  in  Indian  fighting. 

When  I  had,  with  Arnold,  made  my  reconnoissance, 
we  had  thoroughly  examined  the  position  of  the  Indian 
camp.  It  was  placed  upon  the  summit  of  a  precipice 
some  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  height,  which  beetled 
over  a  cleft  or  ravine  in  the  mountain  of  considerable 
width. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSK.  113 

On  the  side  which  we  had  approached  it,  it  had  been 
entirely  unguarded. 

Had  it  not  been  for  their  defeat  of  the  large  party 
under  Major  Ormsby  on  the  preceding  day,  they  would, 
even  in  such  a  position,  scarcely  have  neglected  to 
keep  a  watch. 

However,  now,  from  our  side  of  the  mountain,  they 
had  not  any  suspicion  of  the  possibility  of  an  attack. 

But,  although  unable  to  count  their  positive  number, 
Harry  Arnold  and  myself  had  seen  that  they  were  ex 
ceedingly  numerous  ;  at  the  very  least,  six  or  seven  times 
outnumbering  our  own  party.  It  was,  therefore,  a 
matter  of  absolute  necessity  for  us,  even  in  taking  them 
by  surprise,  to  secure  every  possible  advantage  of  posi 
tion,  in  order  to  counterbalance  this  disproportion.  To 
the  left  of  the  camp,  in  the  rear  of  the  plateau  occupied 
by  the  slumbering  red  men,  the  ground  rose  more  pre 
cipitously  than  it  did  on  the  side  from  which,  some  three 
hours  earlier,  we  approached  them.  A  portion  of  the 
boys,  under  the  command  of  Arnold,  was  therefore 
detailed  to  this  spot,  while  the  remainder  crouched 
under  cover  where  it,  at  the  time,  was. 

After  this  we  waited  impatiently  for  the  rapidly  com 
ing  dawn.  This  was  a  necessity,  that  we  might  have 
sufficient  light  to  catch  the  sights  of  our  rifles.  We 
dared  not  throw  away  a  single  shot. 

A  long  red  streak,  like  a  band  of  flame,  colored  the 
eastern  horizon  when  the  Indians  began  to  stir.  The 
flrst  of  the  unconscious  savages  had  risen  to  his  feet, 
when  my  order  rung  out  sharp  and  clear : 

"  Fire ! " 

The  red-skin  fell,  and  in  an  instant  all  was  terror  and 
confusion  in  the  doomed  camp. 


114  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Startled  and  confused  by  the  sudden  volley  which  was 
delivered  with  slaughterously  fatal  precision,  the  scarcely 
awakened  red-skins  leapt  to  their  feet.  Then  came  a 
volley  from  the  party  of  Rangers  with  Harry  Arnold. 
It  was  followed  by  another  from  mine.  I  had  taken  the 
precaution  of  ordering  every  other  man  to  fire  with  each 
discharge,  so  as  to  give  the  preceding  marksmen  time  to 
reload.  Like  clock-work  rang  out  our  deadly  rifles, 
each  shot  dropping  a  man. 

Fright  had  almost  maddened  the  Indians,  from  the 
first  intimation  we  had  given  them  of  our  presence. 
Some  ran  from  side  to  side  of  the  plateau,  looking  vainly 
for  a  chance  to  escape.  Others  attempted  to  scale  the 
declivity  on  which  my  portion  of  the  boys  were  posted, 
and  the  rocks  above  which  Harry  held  his  position,  in 
the  very  face  of  our  fire.  A  few  stood  and  endeavored 
to  return  us  what  we  were  giving  them.  However,  they 
were  considerably  below  either  party  ;  consequently, 
their  shots  rattled  on  the  rocky  sides  of  either  slope 
short  of  us. 

Again  and  again  our  untiring  volleys  rang  out  on  the 
no  longer  quiet  dawn. 

Then,  actually  frantic  with  terror,  many  of  the  doomed 
savages  leapt  from  the  brink  of  the  precipice.  Others 
contrived  to  scramble  over  the  broken  edge  of  it,  on  the 
precarious  and  jutting  portions  of  which  they  would 
scarcely,  even  in  mid-day,  under  other  circumstances, 
have  trodden.  In  less  than  probably  ten  minutes  from 
our  first  fire,  not  a  living  Indian  remained  in  the  camp 
where  they  had  lately  been  sleeping.  On  examining 
this — for  it  would  have  been  useless  and,  perhaps,  dan 
gerous  for  us  to  follow  the  runaways — we  found  enough 
to  convince  ns  that  the  white  men  had  lately  been  se- 


BUClvSKIN   MOSE.  115 

verely  punished.  Scalps,  shot-pouches,  and  carbines, 
with  other  tokens,  were  hurriedly  left  behind  in  their 
flight,  to  testify  to  this. 

"  We  were  not  quick  enough  after  the  red  devils, 
Mose!" 

Arnold  said  this,  as,  with  a  positively  qualmish  sensa 
tion  in  my  throat,  I  was  standing  upon  that  stony  stretch 
of  level  ground  which  was  now  reekingly  slippery  with 
blood. 

"  We  had  better  leave  at  once  for  the  place  where  our 
horses  are." 

"  I'd  like  to  know  who  the  whites  were  the  darned 
scoundrels  have  trimmed  so  neatly  ?  " 

While  saying  this,  he  was  meditatively  turning  over 
two  scalps  which  lay  on  the  gore-stained  rock,  beside  a 
motionless  red-skin,  now  as  scalpless  as  the  bodies  from 
which  he  had  taken  them. 

"P'raps,"  ejaculated  Brighton  Bill,  whose  feelings 
had  in  the  last  few  years  marvellously  changed  in  regard 
to  the  legitimate  manner  of  fighting  the  red-skins,  "  they 
be  some  o'  Ilorinsby's  chaps." 

"  Nonsense ! "  exclaimed  Harry. 

"  Bill ! "  I  said,  "  do  you  think  the  Major  would  have 
been  such  an  idiot  as  to  get  trapped  by  the  red  skunks  ? " 

"  Why  not  ?  'E  mightn't  be  h'as  thundering  cute  as 
you  h'are,  Cap  ! " 

Unfortunately,  as  we  soon  discovered,  my  English 
friend  was  right  in  his  supposition. 

The  sun  had  just  risen  when  we  started  on  our  re 
turn,  and  before  we  reached  the  place  where  we  had 
picketed  our  horses  under  guard  the  preceding  day,  we 
fell  in  with  two  of  the  survivors  of  the  ill-fated  party, 
and  learned  from  them  the  details  of  the  massacre,  for 


116  BUCKSKIN   MOSE, 

which  we  liad  unwittingly  just  taken  so  large  and  whole 
sale  a  vengeance.  This  information  completely  obliter 
ated  every  trace  of  compunction,  for  the  morning's  even 
more  wholesale  slaughter,  which  I  had  previously  felt. 

Crossing  over  to  the  south  side  of  Honey  Lake  Val 
ley,  we  followed  it  up  to  Captain  Bird's  old  ranche. 

After  passing  it,  we  found  every  house  arid  farm 
empty  and  stripped  of  all  that  was  in  any  way  portable. 
The  whole  of  the  stock  had  also  been  driven  off.  But 
for  the  trarnp  of  our  hoofs,  this  portion  of  the  valley 
would  have  been  as  silent  as  a  desert. 

"I'd  say,  Cap!"  exclaimed  Butch',  "the  cuss'd  red 
devils  had  been  here,  too — only  there  are  no  dead  men, 
laying  round  promisc'ons  like." 

Upon  reaching  Epstine's  Ranche,  we  discovered  the 
meaning  of  this.  The  owner,  Joe,  here  informed  us, 
the  news  of  Orrnsby's  death,  and  that  of  most  of  the  men 
with  him,  had  reached  the  upper  end  of  the  valley  on 
the  day  before.  A  complete  terror  had  seized  upon  the 
whole  of  those  then  dwelling  in  it,  and  a  general  stam 
pede  had  taken  place  amongst  them  for  Dr.  Slater's 
Ranche,  above  what  is  now  the  town  of  Janesville. 

"Ilowev'r  I  guess'd  I'd  wait  a  bit,  and  see  what 
turn'd  up." 

He  was  fingering  his  rifle,  as  he  made  the  last  obser 
vation.  But  on  receiving  the  information  of  our  retal 
iation  his  face  brightened,  and  he  gave  utterance  to  a 
guttural  exclamation  of  fierce  and  somewhat  blasphem 
ous  delight,  to  which  it  will  be  needless  for  the  pen  to 
do  justice. 

On  arriving  at  the  ranche  where  he  had  told  us  his 
brother  settlers  had  taken  refuge,  we  found  the  men 
liard  at  work  building  a  regular  stockade  around  a 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  117 

cabin,  which  had  the  year  previous  been  erected  for 
the  double  purpose  of  a  school-house  aud  Masonic  JTall. 
In  spite  of  the  joy  with  which  our  intelligence  was  re 
ceived,  they  did  not  however  desist  from  their  labors. 
And,  possibly,  they  were  right,  as  the  Indian  troubles 
continued,  and  though  the  savages  refrained  from  posi 
tively  besieging  the  stockade  while  the  Buckskin  Ran 
gers  were  around,  they  on  one  or  two  occasions  ran  off 
large  quantities  of  the  stock. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  season,  we  were  occu 
pied  in  a  continuous  scouting  through  this  entire  section 
of  the  country. 

It  was  during  one  of  our  expeditions  that  Tom  Har 
vey,  one  of  us,  was  the  subject  of  a  good  joke. 

Human  nature,  in  whatever  situation  it  may  be  placed, 
lias  always  a  ludicrous  side.  Commonly,  indeed,  hu 
mor  would  almost  appear  to  be  the  twin-sister  of  sorrow. 
They  would,  indeed,  seem  to  walk  through  life,  leaning 
upon  each  other,  and  hand  in  hand,  to  the  very  edge  of 
the  grave.  The  marvellous  creations  of  Shakespeare's 
genius  partake  well-nigh  equally  of  Tragedy  and  Com 
edy.  Even  so  was  it  with  the  Buckskin  Hangers,  and 
their  leader  may  be  pardoned  if  he  presumes  to  recall 
one  of  those  creations  (without  the  remotest  hope  of 
rivalling  the  intellect  he  has  just  called  attention  to) 
with  the  view  of  justifying  himself. 

"  Falstaff  "  was  most  undeniably,  as  he  has  been  drawn 
by  the  great  dramatist,  a  fat  man.  Wherever  fat  can 
be  found,  the  spirit  of  Fun  almost  invariably  selects 
it  as  the  subject  or  perpetrator  of  a  joke.  Now  Tom 
was  a  man  of  enormous  dimensions,  if  not  in  length, 
very  certainly  in  width.  Brighton  Bill  once  said  of 
him,  that : 


118  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  Ilif  'e  was  'ammered  liout,  'e  would  be  long  lienough 
to  reach  the  Nor'  Pole,  hand  find  Sir  John  Franklin." 

If  he  had  not  been  slenderer  than  Tom,  I  think  his 
scalp,  the  moment  after  Bill  had  uttered  this  obser 
vation,  might  very  possibly  have  been  in  the  possession 
of  Harvey. 

However,  this  is  a  digression. 

On  one  of  our  numerous  scouts  we  had  left  our  hor 
ses,  guarded  as  usual,  and  were  passing  up  a  small  val 
ley,  covered  with  a  scattering  growth  of  diminutive  and 
remarkably  lean  trees,  when  some  Indians,  concealed  in 
a  small  grove  immediately  in  front  of  us,  pulled  trigger. 
Luckily  their  fire  drew  no  blood.  But,  as  in  such  cases, 
it  is  natural  for  him  who  is  the  subject  of  such  an  un 
expected  attention  to  jump  behind  anything  which  may 
be  at  hand,  to  shelter  himself,  we,  each  of  us,  made  for 
the  largest  and  nearest  tree.  None  of  them  were 
sufficiently  broad  to  make  any  of  us  a  tolerably  good 
cover. 

In  this  situation,  Tom  also  made  for  a  tree. 

Its  exaggeratedly  narrow  trunk,  merely  concealed  his 
head  and  the  centre  of  his  prodigious  frame.  Butch', 
who  was  nearest  to  him,  could  not  help  crying  out. 

"  Look  out,  Fattee,  or  we  shall  only  have  the  middle 
of  yer  left," 

"  Hold  your  darned  tongue,  you  infernal  fool ! " 
roared  out  Harvey. 

While  saying  this  he  had  dodged  to  the  one  side  of 
the  tree,  to  escape  an  arrow  which  whistled  by  the  other. 
With  commendable  judgment,  he  lost  no  time  in  leap 
ing  to  the  side  he  had  left.  This  exertion  of  agility 
saved  him  from  a  bullet. 

Butch'  had  drawn  a  bead  on  the  head  of  the  red-skin 


"  '  I  forgive  you,  old  boy  I '  panted  out  Tom,  as  he  leapt  back  once 
more."— Page  119. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  119 

who  had  fired  the  last,  and  with  a  yell  of  agon}7,  he 
toppled  over,  struck  by  the  Ranger's  unerring  ball. 

"  I  forgive  you,  old  boy,"  panted  out  Torn,  as  he  leapt 
back  once  more. 

This  time  he  was  scarcely  quick  enough,  as  another 
ball  passed  through  the  flying  portion  of  his  Buckskin 
upper  garment. 

u  Why  don't  yer  hide  yer  fat  carcass,"  sung  out 
Butch'  in  fierce  wrath.  There  was  no  more  time  for 
jesting.  "  If  yer  don't,  we  shall  have  to  bury  yer." 

"  How  can  I  ?  " 

As  the  perspiring  Harvey  screeched  out  this  amidst 
a  general  chorus  of  laughter,  he  took  another  wild  leap, 
which  was  not  one  bit  too  soon. 

All  this  had  taken  place  in  considerably  less  time 
than  I  have  occupied  in  recounting  it,  or  I  fear  all 
would  have  been  up  with  the  too  fat  Tom.  The  tree 
which  I  had  been  fortunate  enough  to  secure  was  a 
fairly  large  pine.  From  behind  it,  I  had  the  luck  of 
picking  off  an  incautious  red-skin,  and  was  already 
sighting  another,  when  I  heard  our  fat  companion's 
voice.  He  had  (how  he  dared  to  look  round,  I  never 
knew)  moaned  or  rather  barked  out,  in  a  plaintive 
way: 

"  For  God's  sake,  Mose  !  swap  trees  with  me." 

The  irrepressible  scream  of  laughter  with  which  this 
pathetic  appeal  was  received  by  me,  caused  my  shot  to 
be  useless.  It  missed  the  Pah-ute  I  was  aiming  at. 

Temporary  inability  on  the  part  of  our  boys,  from  the 
painfully  absurd  position  of  Harvey,  to  maintain  a  con 
tinuous  fire,  now  induced  the  red-skins  to  show  them 
selves  more  boldly.  They  quickly  found  the  mistake 
they  had  made  in  doing  so.  A  general  although 


120  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

scattering  volley  stretched  a  third  of  them  upon  the 
earth.  They  then  evidently  changed  their  opinion,  and 
once  more  getting  under  cover,  rapidly  scattered. 

We  pursued  them  a  short  way,  when  we  were  over 
taken  by  the  remainder  of  our  party,  which  we  had  left 
in  charge  of  our  animals. 

Remounting  them,  we  again  started  in  pursuit.  The 
red  rascals  had  met,  however,  with  too  warm  a  recep 
tion  to  wait  for  any  further  attention  at  our  hands. 
They  had  cleared  out,  and  made  good  their  escape  across 
the  mountains. 

For  many  days  the  luckless  Harvey  did  not  hear  the 
last  of  his  offer  "  to  swap  trees  "  with  me.  At  length, 
I,  who  had  refrained  from  cutting  any  of  the  tolerably 
coarse  witticisms  which  were  uttered  at  his  expense,  was 
obliged  to  remonstrate  warmly  with  Butch'  and  Bright- 
ton  Bill. 

"  Yer  are  right,  Cap  !  "  exclaimed  the  former.  "  But 
I  sware,  it  war  too  good  a  joke." 

"  Wouldn't  it  be  better  to  split  'im  down,  and  splice 
'is  two  hends  ? " 

As  Bill  said  this  they  both  burst  into  a  peal  of  laugh 
ter,  loud  enough  to  be  called  Homeric,  by  any  but  a 
backwoodsman.  They  were,  however,  two  good  fel 
lows,  for  they  spoke  to  the  other  Rangers,  and  after 
this,  fat  Tom  Harvey  was  left  in  peace.  How  he  dis 
covered  the  hand,  I  had,  in  easing  him  off,  it  would  be 
impossible  to  say,  as  I  never  knew.  But  some  two  days 
afterwards  ho  came  up  to  me  and  Harry  Arnold,  as  we 
were  riding  along  slightly  in  advance,  and  said : 

"Mose!  you're  a  darned  good  fellow,  and  I'll  be 
blamed  if  I  ever  forget  it." 

«  What  do  you  mean,  Tom  ? " 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  121 

"For  stopping  the  chin-music  of  them  fellows.  What 
on  airth  else,  should  I  mean  ? 

At  the  4same  time,  he  jerked  his  thumb  across  his 
shoulder  in  the  direction  of  the  rest  of  the  party,  who 
were  at  some  little  distance  in  our  rear,  very  signifi 
cantly. 

"  You  see,  Cap ! "  exclaimed  Harry  with  a  slight 
chuckle,  "  what  the  copy-book  tells  us,  is  right,  after 
all." 

"  What  are  you  driving  at  ? " 

"  It  says,  Virtue  is  its  own  reward." 

We  had  retraced  our  steps,  passing  Eagle  Lake  into 
Willow  Creek  Yalley,  on  the  far  side  of  the  range  of 
hills  which  divide  it  from  Honey  Lake,  until  we  arrived 
at  the  stockade  built  by  the  settlers,  which  has  earlier 
been  alluded  to. 

A  few  days  subsequently,  we  struck  into  Long  Yalley, 
and  having  crossed  Pea- vine  Mountains,  reached  the 
Truckee  River.  Here  we  encamped,  and  on  the  next 
morning,  following  it  for  some  distance,  struck  across 
the  hills,  towards  the  Sink  of  the  Carson  River.  Passing 
this  stream  below  Fort  Churchill,  we  continued  in  a 
southerly  direction  until  we  came  to  the  Walker  River. 
Near  it,  we  had  a  little  brush  with  the  Walker  Indians, 
which  did  not  detain  us  very  long.  During  this,  one  of 
our  boys  received  a  slight  flesh  wound  from  an  arrow. 
Why  these  red-skins  have  received  this  name  is  matter 
of  question,  as  they  are  certainly  a  branch  of  the  Pah-ute 
tribe.  However,  it  had  been  given  the  savages  in  this 
small  portion  of  the  country,  and  while  I  was  living  in 
that  section,  of  which  it  forms  part,  it  stuck  to  them. 

On  the  west  fork  of  Walker  River,  we  were  met  by 
a  company  of  United  States  cavalry. 
6 


122  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

The  officer  in  command  inquired  for  our  leader,  and  I 
presented  myself. 

He  behaved  very  courteously  in  manneu,  although 
his  orders,  given  to  me  with  a  degree  of  imperative 
sharpness,  which  was  scarcely  as  courteous  in  reality, 
were  by  no  means  agreeable.  His  instructions  were  to 
make  peace  with  the  Indians,  and  lie  commanded  us  to 
return  homewards.  If  we  would  not  desist  from  our 
present  employment,  he  told  us,  he  should  be  obliged  to 
arrest  us  and  take  us  down  to  Fort  Churchill.  These 
peremptory  orders  were  unpalatable  to  the  last  degree. 
But  what  could  be  done.  He  was  Uncle  Sam's  servant 
in  blue-coat,  brass  buttons,  and  shoulder-straps.  We 
were  children  of  the  aforesaid  Unc^e  Sam. 

Like  obedient  boys,  although  most  unwillingly,  we  con 
cluded,  after  a  brief  hesitation,  to  bend  our  steps  home 
wards. 

"With  a  cordial  grasp  of  the  hand — for,  on  finding  we 
had  so  frankly  accepted  the  compulsory  situation,  the 
officer  unbent  himself  considerably — I  bade  him  "  Fare 
well,"  and  we  silently,  for  some  time,  rode  along  the 
course  of  the  stream.  The  first  words  I  heard  subse 
quently,  were  some  ten  minutes  after  this.  They  came 
from  the  lips  of  Brighton  Bill. 

"  Huncle  Sam  his  nothing  but  a  blasted  hidiot." 

Possibly,  I  might  have  been  valuing  some  of  his  ser 
vants  at  much  the  same  weight,  but  I  was  too  good  an 
American  to  stand  such  an  expression  of  opinion  from 
a  Britisher.  Turning  in  my  saddle,  I  roared  out : 

u  None  of  that.  It's  high  treason.  I'll  be  hanged  if 
I  haven't  half  a  mind  to  ride  after  the  blue-coats,  and 
hand  you  over  to  them." 

When  I  said  this,  there  was  a  general  laugh,  and  the 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  123 

whole  of  us  recovered,  in  some  measure,  our  good 
humor. 

After  continuing  about  twenty  miles  along  the  road 
the  soldiers  had  just  traversed,  we  encamped  about  two 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  turning  our  horses  out  to  graze, 
as  there  was  good  pasture  in  the  neighborhood.  Por 
tion  of  the  boys  commenced  cooking.  Butch',  having  a 
somewhat  more  dainty  tooth  in  his  head  on  this  occasion 
than  usual,  felt  it  crave  for  fresh  meat,  and  said  to  me : 

"  'Spose  I.  go  out,  and  kill  yer  something  to  eat." 

"  All  right,"  was  my  answer.  "  You  may  find  a  Jack 
or  two,"  meaning  a  Jack  rabbit,  "  down  the  valley.  I'll 
go  up  the  canon,  and  see  whether  I  can't  find  some 
grouse." 

Saying  this,  I  had  pointed  to  a  small  canon  on  one  side, 
stretching  irregularly  from  the  vicinity  of  our  camping 
ground.  At  the  same  instant,  Brighton  Bill,  who  had 
been  stretched  on  the  cool  turf  with  his  eyes  closed, 
leapt  to  his  feet. 

"  You're  hawful  smart,  hain't  you,  Mose  ?  Ili'll  'ave 
some  hof  that  fun  myself.  If  hi  don't,  blow  me." 

He,  however,  thought  fit  to  try  another  canon  to  the 
left. 

For  the  first  time  since  I  had  been  an  inhabitant  of 
the  Plains,  I  neglected  to  arm  myself,  as  I  had  constantly 
been  accustomed  to,  when  scouting.  The  good  servants 
of  Uncle  Sam,  whom  we  had  met  earlier  in  the  day,  had 
travelled  up  the  road.  Of  course  they  had  sharp  eyes. 
Besides,  if  the  red-skins  had  seen  them,  they  would 
certainly  have  got  out  of  their  way  as  quickly  as  pos 
sible.  How  should  they  know  our  Uncle  wanted  to 
be  theirs,  too  ?  Peace  would  be  the  very  last  thing  they 
thought  of,  when  they  set  eyes  upon  his  uniform.  So, 


124  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

thinking  there  could  be  no  danger,  I  placed  my  sheath- 
knife  in  my  belt,  and  taking  my  Kentucky  rifle  with  me, 
started. 

Walking  carelessly  up  the  canon,  now  examining  the 
trees  for  game,  then  scaling  the  declivity  to  the  right,  or 
pushing  through  the  chapparal  and  the  heavy  timber,  I 
had  wandered  on,  for  more  than  an  hour. 

Suddenly,  in  one  of  the  thick  and  tangled  clumps  of 
chapparal,  I  fancied  I  heard  the  familiar  note  of  one 
of  the  birds  I  was  in  search  of.  At  once,  I  stopped  to 
listen. 

While  standing  there  silent  and  motionless,  it  could 
scarcely  have  been  more  than  fifty  seconds,  I  heard  a 
noise  almost  immediately  behind.  Instinct  or  experi 
ence,  one  or  both,  told  me  what  that  sound  was.  The 
red-skins  had  not  been  so  scared  by  the  advance  of 
Uncle  Sam's  servants,  as  necessarily  to  refrain  from  a 
dash  for  one  of  his  children,  if  the  chance  was  given 
them.  I  felt  the  chance  wras  now. 

Turning  immediately,  I  had  barely  time  to  see  two 
Indians. 

In  another  instant,  before  I  could  lift  my  gun  to  my 
shoulder,  one  of  them  had  bounded  towards  me  and 
wrenched  it  from  my  grasp,  while  the  other  sprung  at 
me  with  the  evident  intention  of  clinching  me.  If  I 
had  then  the  time  to  think,  I  fear,  loyal  American  as  I 
might  be,  my  thoughts  might  have  corroborated  Brigh 
ton  Bill's  opinions  touching  the  sanity  of  Uncle  Sam. 
Fortunately,  I  had  no  time  to  become  critically  dis 
loyal.  My  hunting-knife  had  been  drawn,  and  at 
the  very  moment  when  his  hot  and  vindictively  fierce 
breath  came  searingly  to  my  face,  was  buried  to  the 
very  hilt  in  his  heart. 


"  He  opened  his  mouth  to  gasp  for  breath;  I  was  above  him,  and 
grasping  a  handful  of  sand,  I  forced  it  into  his  gaping  mouth."  — 
Page  125. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  125 

As  lie  fell,  the  other  of  my  assailants,  with  my  own 
rifle  clubbed,  struck  me  a  heavy  blow  upon  the  shoul 
der.  It  nearly  felled  me  to  the  earth. 

Then,  dropping  the  weapon,  he  sprang  upon  me, 
making  a  desperate  clutch  for  the  hand  in  which  my 
knife  was  grasped.  As  he  seized  my  wrist,  I  threw  the 
knife  from  me  as  far  as  I  could,  and  grappled  with 
him.  He  attempted  to  draw  his  own.  I,  however,  had 
grasped  him  by  a  peculiarly  tender  portion  of  his  per 
son,  which  modesty  prevents  me  from  naming.  The 
pain  of  this  prevented  his  using  his  knife,  and  in  the 
contest  we  both  fell  "on  the  sloping  side  of  the  canon, 
clinched  together  firmly. 

Now,  commenced  the  struggle  for  life. 

Rolling  over  and  over,  now  on  the  short  turf,  and 
again  amidst  the  dense  and  tangled  chapparal — at  one 
moment  the  red-skin  would  be  above  me,  and  in  the 
next  I  would  be  stretched  on  his  writhing  body. 
Whenever  I  got  the  chance,  and  one  of  my  hands  free, 
I  would  seize  a  handful  of  sand,  if  it  was  within  reach, 
and  thrust  it  in  the  mouth  and  eyes  of  the  Indian. 

He  was  not  slow  in  taking  the  lesson  I  gave  him. 
He  began  to  follow  suit. 

After  rolling  down  the  side  of  the  canon  for  some 
hundred  yards  or  more,  panting  with  the  desperate 
struggle,  he  opened  his  mouth  to  gasp  for  breath.  At 
the  time  I  was  above  him,  and  grasping  a  handful  of 
sand,  I  forced  it  into  his  gaping  mouth. 

It  had  its  effect.  Literally  choking  with  the  enforced 
dose,  he  loosened  me.  At  the  same  time,  he  violently 
threw  up  his  hands,  as  a  man  might  do  in  the  agony  of 
strangulation. 

Then,  with  a  supreme  effort,  I  groped  for  his  knife. 


126  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Having  found  it,  I  drew  it  from  its  sheath,  and,  at  last, 
the  terrible  struggle  which  had  been  forced  upon  me 
was  over. 

When,  at  occasional  times,  I  recall  it  now,  it  seems 
to  my  recollection  as  if  that  brief  contest  for  existence 
had  nearly  maddened  me.  Scarcely  did  I  appear  to 
possess  consciousness  of  any  of  my  actions.  And  yet, 
I  know  that  I  inflicted  on  him  some  fifteen  to  twenty 
wounds,  any  one  of  which  might  or  must  have  been  a 
fatal  one. 

As  I  found  myself  once  more  upon  my  feet,  it  was  a 
tolerably  difficult  matter  for  me  'to  realize  that  I  was 
still  living. 

While  engaged  in  attempting  to  do  so,  the  whole 
landscape  seemed  to  quiver  vaguely  under  my  fading 
eyes.  Its  lines  and  colors  fairly  danced  before  me.  I 
felt  that  I  wras  falling,  and  everything  around  settled 
into  a  dense  blackness. 

I  knew  no  more. 

On,  after  some  time,  recovering  my  senses,  I  found 
that  I  was  lying  by  the  side  of  the  Indian,  literally 
drenched  with  the  blood  flowing  from  his  wounds. 
Sitting  up,  after  a  few  minutes,  I  was  enabled  to  recall 
my  lagging  senses  and  realize  the  struggle  I  had  -gone 
through.  Yes !  there  it  lay,  stark  and  motionless  in 
the  shadow  thrown  across  it  from. the  rocky  side  of  the 
canon,  by  the  sun  which  was  now  far  beneath  it.  As  for 
the  corpse  beside  me,  it  was  stabbed  and  hacked  in  a 
frightful  manner.  But  for  the  fearful  strife  I  had 
been  engaged  in  with  it,  when  living,  and  the  danger  I 
had,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  so  unaccountably  escaped,  I 
should  positively  have  sickened  at  the  sight.  The 
memory  of  this  strung  my  nerves  once  more  to  endur- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  127 

ance,  although  rny  garments  were  dripping  with  its 
blood,  and  absolutely  soaked  through  with  my  own 
sweat. 

Staggering  to  my  feet,  1  re-collected  my  senses,  which 
had,  for  a  short  space,  again  wandered.  Then,  with  some 
difficulty,  I  again  ascended  the  rough  hill,  until  I  reached 
the  space  on  which  the  first  Indian,  I  had,  made  an  end 
of,  was  lying.  His  teeth  were  forced  together — his  eyes 
staring  unconsciously  up  to  the  blue  sky.  My  knife 
was  at  some  distance  from  the  spot.  The  rifle  was  close 
to  him.  Its  barrel  was  bent  and  its  stock  broken  with 
the  heavy  blow  I  had  received. 

Let  me  squarely  own  that  never,  either  before  or  since, 
have  I  raised  the  hair  of  any  Indian,  with  a  more  secure 
feeling  of  angry  joy  than  I  felt  in  taking  those  two 
scalps. 

I  had  now  to  return. 

The  position  of  the  sun,  low  beneath  the  western  sum 
mit  of  the  canon,  testified  to  the  fact  that  some  two  hours 
must  have  elapsed  since  the  two  Pah-utes  had  leapt  upon 
me. 

Slowly,  and  with  great  difficulty,  I  commenced  my  way 
towards  the  camp.  While  looking  on  the  scene  of  my 
danger,  I  had  been  kept  up  by  the  remains  of  the  excite 
ment  I  had  experienced.  I  had  felt  no  pain,  and  been 
unconscious  of  fatigue.  Now,  my  dead  enemies  lay  un 
consciously  on  the  earth.  The  exhaustion  consequent 
on  my  fierce  struggle  for  life,  and  the  suffering  from 
the  blow  upon  my  shoulder,  became  apparent  to  me. 
Scarcely,  was  I  able  to  walk.  Frequently  was  I  obliged 
to  lean  on  a  jutting  boulder  of  rock,  or  steady  myself  for 
a  minute  or  two  against  the  trunk  of  a  tree,  before  I 
could  again  persistently  renew  my  progress.  Not  yet 


128  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

had  I  reached  the  month  of  the  canon,  when  some  of  the 
boys  met  me. 

It  seemed  that  Butch'  and  Brighton  Bill  had  long 
since  returned,  and,  although  scarcely  alarmed,  had 
grown  in  some  slight  degree  uneasy  at  my  not  putting  in 
an  appearance.  Consequently,  with  some  of  the  others, 
they  had  come  out  to  seek  for  me. 

No  sooner  was  I  seen  by  them,  than  they  shouted  out 
to  me.  My  lips  strove  to  frame  a  shout  in  reply.  But 
even  to  myself,  my  voice  sounded  a  long  way  off.  It 
was  so  faint  and  low  that  they  did  not  hear  a  word. 

Rushing  towards  me,  Bill  cried  out : 

"  What  his  the  matter,  Mose  3 " 

Butch'  demanded : 

"  Have  yer  got  any  game  ? " 

The  only  answer  I  could  give  them  was  to  hold  out 
the  two  scalps  I  had  taken. 

Startled  by  this  and  my  struggling  silence,  for  they 
knew  I  was  attempting  to  speak,  they  looked  at  my 
dress,  and  in  spite  of  the  fading  light,  saw  its  torn  and 
dilapidated  condition,  and  the  blood  with  which  it  was 
smeared  and  streaked  almost  in  every  part.  Bill  gave 
a  groan,  and  said  : 

"  Get  Mose  to  the  camp,  Butch' !  Hi'll  go  hand  look 
hafter  'is  rifle,  before  some  hother  thieving  Hingin 
cusses  find  hit." 

In  an  another  instant  Ben  Painter  had  lifted  me,  and 
throwing  me,  gently  enough,  although  it  caused  me 
frightful  suffering  in  my  shoulder,  across  his  own,  strode 
down  the  canon.  Indeed,  so  great  was  the  pain  from 
the  merciless  blow  I  had  received,  that  I  remember  lit 
tle  beside  it,  until  I  found  myself  sitting  on  the  ground, 
leaning  against  Painter's  knee.  The  whole  of  the  upper 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 


129 


portion  of  my  dress  had  been  stripped  off,  while  Butch' 
was  bathing  the  black  and  swollen  flesh  which  had  been 
struck  with  the  clubbed  rifle.  How  it  happened  that  no 
bones  were  broken  by  it,  is,  even  now,  a  marvel  to  me. 

When  they  found  me  again  able  to  speak,  the  boys 
began  to  ply  me  with  questions.  But  while  I  was  an 
swering  them,  Brighton  Bill  appeared  on  the  scene. 

His  search  of  the  ground  on  which  I  had  run  such  a 
risk  of  being  completely  chawed  up,  must  have  been  a 
pretty  thorough  one.  He  brought  in,  not  only  two  rifles, 
but  two  United  States  blankets,  several  unopened  boxes 
of  caps,  two  cans  of  powder,  and,  in  addition  to  these,  a 
small  keg  of  Uncle  Sam's  whiskey.  This  had  already 
been  opened,  and  may  possibly  account  for  the  red  ras 
cals  having  forgotten  the  reason  for  which  they  had  so 
liberally  partaken  of  his  bounty. 

The  whiskey  was  a  veritable  God-send,  for  we  were 
out  of  the  article.  A  tincupful  (this  time  I  did  not 
ask  for  a  second  before  eating)  did  more  to  put  me  to 
rights,  and  enable  me  to  forget  my  pain,  than  the  care 
which  the  Rangers  had  been  bestowing  on  me. 

"  If  ever  there  was  a  good  Samaritan,  Bill,  you  are  one." 

Let  me  here  record  the  fact  that  Bill  knew  nothing 
about  Samaritans,  for  good  or  evil.  Nor,  indeed,  am  I 
inclined  to  think,  had  any  of  the  others  a  very  correct 
idea  of  my  meaning.  Even  the  teaching  of  a  New 
England  Sunday-school  had  been  forgotten,  as  I  deeply 
regret  being  obliged  to  say  one  of  the  boys  hailed  from 
the  classically  Methodist  locality  of  New  Bedford. 

But,  if  Brighton  Bill  was  not  well  versed  in  Scripture, 
he  displayed  himself  this  evening  in  a  new  light — that 
of  an  orator.  No  sooner  had  he  served  round  the 
whiskey  which  lie  had  captured  from  the  already 


130  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

slaughtered  enemy,  than  he  produced  from  one  of  the 
blankets  in  which  he  had  wrapped  it,  my  twisted  and 
broken  rifle. 

"Jist  look  'ere,  boys,"  he  said,  "  hat  the  popper  of 
hour  Cap.  This  h'is  the  harticle  with  which  'e  smashed 
ha  couple  of  Hingins.  Ili'rn  blowecl  h'if  you  didn't, 
Mose  !  H'it's  no  huse  'iding  your  light  bunder  a  bushel, 
when  H'i  'ave  the  hevidence  in  my  hown  'and,  and  show 
bit."  Here  I  endeavored  to  put  in  a  word,  but  it  was 
drowned  in  the  general  applause,  and  seizing  on  the  in 
stant  of  its  cessation,  he  continued  :  "  H'if  you  'ad  only 
seen  those  blarsted  Hingins.  Wnn  of  'em  stood  seven 
an  a  'alf  foot  'igh  in  'is  stocking-feet,  and  the  h'other — " 

I  could  no  longer  refrain,  but  cried  out : 

"  It's  quite  clear  who  tapped  the  whiskey  keg,  before 
we  had  a  chance  of  looking  at  it." 

The  Britisher  gazed  in  pathetic  wonder  on  his  par 
tially  maimed  leader,  as  he  heard  this  ungenerous  in 
sinuation  against  his  sobriety.  Then  with  a  sadly 
melancholy  smile,  he  said  : 

"  H'i  forgive  you,  Cap !  But,  may  H'i  be  blamed  if 
you  harn't  a  tuff  'un." 

That  night,  guard  being  kept  by  Butch'  and  Ben 
Painter,  I  slept  well  and  soundly.  On  the  next  morn 
ing  I  was  up  by  daylight,  and  we  returned  to  Honey 
Lake  through  Carson  City. 

When  we  arrived  there  it  was  to  hear  that  another 
treaty  had  actually  been  made  with  the  Indians.  Once 
more  they  were  to  be  allowed  to  re-enter  the  valley. 
The  settlers  were  to  resume  possession  of  their  ranches, 
and  what  stock  was  left  on  them,  or  could  be  found. 
How  long  it  would  continue,  the  Devil  and  the  red 
men  themselves,  only,  could  form  an  opinion. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
THE  PICK,  PAN,  AND  SnovEL — SOMEWHAT  DOWN  IN  THE  MOUTH — 

"  ROPING  IN  A  GrREENEY" — TlIE  SHREWD  YANKEE— A  SQUARE 

MEAL,  AND  A  BAD  ONE— No  GOLD— NEARLY  AT  STARVATION 
POINT — THE  ELK,  AND  now  LONG  IT  LASTED — MOUNTAIN  MEAT 
— CAPTURED  BY  THE  INDIANS— MY  EXPERIENCE  OF  THE  STAKE 
— CONVERTED  INTO  A  CANDLESTICK — THE  CRACK  OP  A  DOZEN 
RIFLES. 

IN  something  less  than  two  weeks,  my  shoulder  was 
completely  well,  and  the  enforced  inactivity  had  made 
me  restless. 

At  this  time,  the  vast  treasures  of  gold  said  to  be 
awaiting  the  miner  in  British  Columbia,  near  Frazer's 
River,  created  great  excitement  through  the  "West. 
The  fever  of  this  excitement  was  like  all  such  fevers — 
contagious  among  the  idle.  Having  then  nothing  to  do, 
I  caught  it.  In  an  informal  meeting  with  several  of 
the  Hangers,  I  proposed  to  them  that  we  should  visit  the 
new  land  of  promise.  As  they  were  willing  to  accom 
pany  me,  a  full  meeting  was  summoned.  At  this  it  was 
unanimously  determined  that  the  journey  should  be 
undertaken,  if  we  could  make  it  by  land. 

After  some  few  days  spent  in  the  necessary  inquiries, 
it  was  finally  decided  we  should  start  for  the  recently 
discovered  locality,  where  fortunes  were  believed  to  be 
awaiting  the  pick,  pan,  and  shovel — as  speedily  as  we 
could  make  due  preparation  for  doing  so. 

This  did  not  take  any  very  great  length  of  time.  In 
less  than  a  week  the  whole  of  us  were  in  readiness. 


132  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

And  after  a  kindly,  and,  in  some  cases,  more  than  kindly, 
farewell  to  our  friends  in  Susanville  and  round  Honey 
Lake,  we  put  ourselves  on  the  road  to  the  new  locality. 

The  natural  rush  and  active  whirl  of  my  life  during 
the  last  few  years,  had,  by  this,  almost  deadened  my 
memory  for  those  friends  I  had  left  in  the  East.  He, 
who  is  from  day  to  day  almost  carrying  his  life  in  his 
hand,  has  not  overmuch  time  or  wish  for  reflection.  Oc 
casionally,  I  would  think  of  my  wife  and  my  other 
relatives.  But  I  had  not  yet  made  enough,  really  to 
contemplate  returning  to  them.  Young  still,  it  appeared 
to  me  that  there  were  yet  days  and  years  sufficient  be 
fore  me,  to  dismiss  all  such  dreams  for,  at  any  rate,  the 
present. 

In  fact,  as  I  have  earlier  said,  I  relished  the  constant 
change  and  dasli  of  the  life  I  had  entered  on. 

It  was  no  use  disguising  it,  my  nature  was,  in  every 
respect,  a  vagrantly  instinctive  one,  full  of  vaguely 
wild  hope,  it  is  true,  yet  mingled  with  an  almost  pro 
found  indifference  to  what  the  future  chance  might  be. 

Nevertheless,  on  the  night  before  we  had  determined 
upon  commencing  our  arduous  journey,  I  could  not 
help  feeling  somewhat  down  in  the  mouth.  It  was  with 
a  rare  and  scant  attack  of  homesickness,  which,  how 
ever,  passed  away  from  me  on  the  next  morning,  almost 
as  soon  as  I  found  myself  in  the  saddle. 

It  would  be  unnecessary  for  me  to  catalogue  the  va 
rious  points  we  touched,  through  our  course,  in  the 
fashion  of  a  guide-book.  This,  the  more  especially 
as  nothing  of  great  interest  occurred  on  the  way, 
until,  in  due  time,  we  struck  Frazer's  River,  near  Fort 
Hope. 

Here  we  remained  for  a  few  days,  in  order  to  give 


* 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  133 

our  animals  the  rest  they  needed.     They  had  done  us 
good  service. 

In  this  place,  we  found  that  the  hunger  for  gold  was 
drawing  men  of  the  same  nature  as  ourselves,  to  the 
last-discovered  Eldorado,  from  every  part  of  the  country. 
Young  men  who  wished  to  grow  wealthy  without  patient 
toil,  and  men  more  advanced  in  years,  whose  days  of 
labor  had  as  yet  profited  them  little,  with  an  occasional 
"  rough  "  from  one  of  the  larger  cities,  whose  reputation 
forced  him  into  a  new  country,  or  the  gambler,  whose 
practice  in  "  stocking  the  cards  "  or  "  roping  in  a  green ey," 
had  become  too  well  known.  Some  few  came  also, 
whose  talents  should  have  enabled  them  to  do  battle 
with  the  world  successfully,  in  any  location  they  had 
chosen.  Their  reasons  for  seeking  Frazer's  River  were, 
however,  kept  to  themselves.  None  of  my  companions 
had  sufficient  time  on  his  hands,  or  enough  curiosity,  to 
seek  to  draw  the  veil  from  the  past  life  of  any  of  them. 

There  were,  however,  some  few  who  had  tried  the 
mines  and  were  returning.  Want  of  patience  or  want 
of  luck,  one,  or,  it  may  be  possible,  both  of  these  had 
conjointly  made  them  unsuccessful. 

With  neither  gold  in  their  pockets  nor  grub  in  their 
packs,  these  men  were  for  the  most  part  dead-broke, 
and  heaped  their  imprecations  on  the  country  they  were 
quitting  in  vigorously  round  terms.  Nor  could  it  be 
said,  that  granting  their  ill-fortune  might  somewhat 
have  colored  their  opinions,  these  were  too  flattering. 

One  of  these  whom  we  met  with,  was  a  stalwart 
specimen  of  the  shrewd  Yank.  I  and  Ben  Painter  had 
encountered  him,  wandering  round  in  a  disconsolately 
drifting  manner,  and  with  a  hungrily  wolfish  look  on 
his  lean  jaws,  which  inspired  us  with  a  degree  of  sym- 


134  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

pathy.  Moreover,  we  were  mentally  "  prospecting  "  the 
yet  unseen  diggings.  The  information  he  could  give 
us,  might  be  valuable.  So,  although  provisions  were 
already  scarce,  and  even  coffee  a  luxury,  we  asked  him 
into  the  camp  to  share  our  evening  meal,  which,  to  tell 
the  truth,  was  by  no  means  too  plentiful.  After  feeding, 
he  honored  us  by  saying : 

"  'Tarnation  bad  as  yer  supper  is,  it  is  the  first  square 
meal  I've  eat,  for  three  days." 

u  How  war  that  ? "  Butch'  asked. 

"  Yer  see,  in  the  mines  there  war  nothing  to  get  for 
love  or  money.  And  here,  I  guess,  there's  darned  little 
love  unless  yer  can  buy  it." 

"  We  heard  that,  up  here,  you  had  only  to  turn  a 
shovel  to  find  gold." 

;i  And  b'lieved  it,  as  I  did,"  he  quietly  growled  out. 

"  Yer  don't  mean  to  say  there  are  none,"  ejaculated 
Ben. 

"  I  guess  yer  won't  do  more  than  any  o'  the  rest  on  us." 

"  But,  some  must  have  had  a  fair  share  of  success,"  I 
said. 

"Why  d'  yer  think  so,  Captain?"  he  drawled  out, 
nasally. 

"From  the  row  about  the  diggings  that  has  been 
made  through  the  whole  of  the  West." 

O 

"  Well,  I'll  tell  yer.  I  was  one  of  the  first  that  come 
out  here,  from  Kalifornee.  I'd  been  duing  a  smartish 
bit  of  business  down  thar.  But  I  tell  yer,  the  dollars 
didn't  come  in  fast  enough.  Than,  1  heerd  of  this 
darned  place,  and  thought  I'd  strike  for  it  and  find  'ile, 
sure.  So,  I  made  up  a  good  kit  o'  things  to  last  me  two 
months,  and  sit  out.  Darn  the  diggings.  I've  been  at 
work  thar,  more  nor  three  months,  and  here  I  am  at 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  135 

the  first  square  meal  I've  sot  down  tu  for  three  days, 
as  I  told  yer  before,  and  a  darned  bad  one,  too,  as  I 
said  when  I  finished  it." 

"  Then  you  don't  believe  there  is  much  gold  in  this 
part  of  the  country  \ " 

"  Thar  may  be,  Captain !  " 

"  What  do  yer  mean,  then  \ "  inquired  Ben  Painter. 

"  I  found  none,"  drawled  out  the  Yank  as  he  slowly 
rose,  "  and  by  the  'Tarnal !  I  nev'r  met  one  as  has." 

The  groan  that  issued  from  the  bottom  of  Brighton 
Bill's  stomach,  would,  at  any  other  time  than  this,  have 
provoked  mirth.  It  did  not,  however,  do  so  now.  The 
matter  was  far  too  serious  for  laughter. 

If  the  disgusted  Yankee  had  told  us  the  truth,  it  was 
evidently  no  use  for  us  to  help  thicken  the  crowd  of 
deluded  seekers  for  gold,  thronging  to  the  diggings. 
Provisions,  as  I  have  earlier  said,  were  scarce.  They 
were  consequently  dear.  Our  own  stock  had  for  sev 
eral  days  been  running  low.  What  was  to  be  done  ? 

More  inquiries  were  made  by  us.  The  replies,  al 
though  varying  in  degree,  were  all  of  them  confirmatory, 
more  or  less,  of  the  Yankee's  opinion. 

After  a  brief  council  of  war,  the  Rangers,  therefore, 
decided  upon  striking  once  more  for  Puget  Sound,  in 
search  of  game.  If  we  found  it,  we  would  kill  enough 
for  us  to  take  our  return-trail.  Game,  however,  was 
scarcer  in  that  locality  than  we  had  found  gold  to  be  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Frazer's  River.  We  had  to  betake 
ourselves  to  digging ;  not  in  the  soil  for  the  precious 
metal,  but  in  the  sand  on  the  shore  of  the  Sound  for 
clams  and  mussels.  Even  these  were  rarely  found  by 
us.  In  short,  the  Rangers  and  their  leader  were  re 
duced  to  the  very  verge  of  starvation.  Nor  did  we  run 


136  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

any  risk  of  meeting  any  charitable  person  who  might 
have  the  means  of  giving  ns  ".one  square  meal,"  even  if 
it  were  "  a  darned  bad  one." 

In  this  strait,  it  was  resolved  on  to  start  for  the 
mountains,  and  take  the  chance  of  killing  or  being 
killed,  to  save  us  from  dying  by  hunger. 

Here,  for  the  first  two  days,  we  met  with  scarcely 
anything.  About  noon  on  the  third,  I  and  Arnold  were 
standing  together.  During  the  whole  morning  we  had 
found  no  game,  and  were  gazing  around  us  with  that 
sense  of  discomfort  a  continuously  empty  stomach  is 
certain  to  produce  in  humanity,  when  we  heard  a  shot 
in  the  distance.  It  was  to  the  right  of  us.  Almost 
immediately  it  was  followed  by  another.  As  the  two 
puffs  of  smoke  drifted  above  the  stunted  pines  which 
covered  the  unequally  rough  ground  in  that  direction,  I 
heard  a  sound  which,  faintly  as  it  came  to  us,  I  imme 
diately  recognized,  from  the  use  of  it  by  Brighton  Bill. 
It  was  what  he  called : 

"  A  'onest  British  cheer." 

"  You  know  the  voice,  Mose  ? " 

"  Yes  !     Let's  break  for  it." 

We  accordingly  "  broke "  in  its  direction.  Three 
more  of  the  boys  had  already  joined  him  and  Ben 
Painter  by  the  time  we  had  arrived  there.  The  two 
first  mentioned  had  met  with  the  good  fortune  of  spot 
ting  a  huge  elk.  The  animal  had  been  killed,  and 
while  still  warm,  the  men  were  engaged  in  skinning 
him. 

A  fire  was  quickly  kindled,  and,  by  the  time,  portion 
of  the  elk  was  ready  for  our  ravenous  appetites,  the  re 
mainder  of  the  Rangers  entered  their  names  as  partners 
in  the  welcome  feast.  For,  that  it  was  right  welcome, 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  137 

my  present  remembrance  of  it  unmistakably  assures 
me. 

Stopping  here  until  we  had  jerked  most  of  the  meat 
on  the  elk's  large  carcass,  we  again  started  on  our  jour 
ney  back. 

Having  travelled  in  an  easterly  course  through  a 
magnificently  wooded  country,  we  reached  the  Colum 
bia  River,  near  Fort  Okimakane,  and  passing  down  it 
through  the  territory  occupied  by  the  Flat-head  tribe 
of  Indians,  arrived  at  the  Walla- Walla.  Thence  we 
crossed  the  Blue  Mountains ;  and,  after  several  days'  more 
travelling  through  the  rocky  wilderness  and  broken 
canons,  arrived  at  the  Owyhee,  which,  some  distance 
higher  up,  we  crossed  and  continued  over  the  range  of 
hills  by  the  side  of  this  stream,  until  we  at  length 
reached  Surprise  Valley. 

We  camped  in  this  spot  for  two  weeks,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  recruiting  our  horses  and  hunting  up  game. 
The  jerked  elk-flesh  was  already  very  nearly  brought  to 
an  end. 

It  was,  while  we  were  in  this  neighborhood,  that  I  met 
with  an  adventure  which  very  nearly  ended  this  volume 
before  I  had  even  written  a  page  of  it,  if  I  may  be  par 
doned  the  Irishism  of  this  expression.  But,  for  the 
opportune  arrival  of  the  Buckskin  Rangers,  my  life 
would  very  certainly  not  have  been  worth  an  empty 
powder-can. 

Early  one  sharply  fresh  morning,  I  had  left  the  camp 
in  the  direction  of  High  Rock  Canon.  This  was  at  a 
distance  of  some  ten  miles. 

While  upon  my  way,  perhaps  some  six  miles  or  more, 
I  saw  a  mountain-sheep.  Having  a  liking  for  wild 
mutton,  I  cautiously  crept  round  the  cliff  upon  which 


138  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

he  was  standing,  to  get  a  fair  shot  at  him.  At  length 
reaching  a  spot  from  which  I  might  consider  myself 
fairly  sure  of  the  meat,  I  fired. 

The  shot  told,  and  the  animal  fell. 

However,  instead  of  dropping  where  he  stood,  and 
where  I  could  not  inconveniently  have  become  possessor 
of  the  toothsome  flesh,  the  perverse  sheep  preferred 
rolling  down  the  cliff. 

Well !  It  would  be  some  more  trouble,  but  I  could 
easily  get  him.  I  therefore  went  round  to  the  base  of 
the  cliff.  On  arriving  there,  I  could  not  help  swearing 
a  most  ungodly  oath.  That  wretched  lump  of  mountain- 
meat  had  chosen  to  remain  some  half-way  from  the  bot 
tom  on  which  I  was,  and  the  top  of  the  precipice,  on 
which  he  had  been  standing. 

My  readers  may  already  have  been  enabled  to  give  me 
credit  for  what  I  consider  my  resolution,  although  some 
of  my  good  friends  have  not  nnoccasionally  denominated 
it  obstinacy. 

It  came  very  decidedly  into  play,  upon  this  occasion. 

I  was  determined  not  to  be  balked  in  my  love  for 
mountain-mutton.  In  accordance  with  my  resolve,  I 
prepared  to  climb  after  it.  The  face  of  the  cliff  was  so 
steep  and  rugged  that,  in  order  to  have  the  use  of  both 
my  hands,  I  was  compelled  to  relinquish  my  rifle. 
Therefore,  depositing  it  where  I  stood,  I  commenced 
the  ascent.  Being  a  good  climber,  I  naturally  thought 
I  should  have  no  more  difficulty  than  that  which  gener 
ally  attends  such  an  operation.  Neither,  had  I.  After 
reaching  the  jutting  point  upon  which  my  mutton  had 
so  pertinaciously  lodged,  I  dislodged  it,  and  sent  it 
down  the  rough  precipice.  It  was  now  time  to  think  of 
myself  regaining  the  base  of  the  cliff,  in  a  less  rapid 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  139 

mode.  But,  to  descend  was  no  child's  play.  Now  I 
could  not  find  the  footing  which  I  remembered  pre 
viously  having.  Consequently,  I  was  obliged  to  wriggle 
my  body  to  one  side  or  the  other,  in  order  to  find  a 
place  to  rest  on.  Afterwards,  the  rock  would  crumble 
under  me,  or  fragments  upon  which  my  feet  were  rest 
ing  would  slip  out  of  their  bedding.  Moreover,  my 
sight  was  utterly  useless.  I  had  to  depend  upon 
the  trained  sense  of  feeling  in  my  moccasined  toes. 
Having  covered  some  space  of  the  face  of  the  cliff,  I 
began  to  find  I  was  not  descending  it  in  the  same  direc 
tion  in  which  I  had  ascended  it.  The  cliff  was  sloping 
inwards.  Again  I  had  to  climb  and  try  a  new  line. 
This  was  apparently  somewhat  better.  However,  plac 
ing  my  feet  upon  the  roots  of  a  sage-bush,  I  was  incau 
tious  enough  to  trust  my  whole  weight  to  it. 

It  tore  out  from  the  face  of  the  cliff. 

When  I  felt  it  giving  way,  I  threw  out  my  hands  to 
grasp  at  some  support. 

While  falling,  all  the  errors  and  faults  I  had  com 
mitted,  seemed  to  rush  across  my  mind.  Why  it  was,  I 
know  not,  but  the  star-like  eyes  of  Clo-ke-ta  blazed 
upon  my  memory. 

Then  I  struck  the  rocky  ground  beneath  me,  and,  for 
the  time,  remembered  no  more. 

Upon  coming  to  my  senses,  I  found  that  my  hands 
were  bound  behind  me. 

Looking  with  scarcely  conscious  anger  around,  I  saw 
several  red-skins. 

These,  I  presume,  had  been  watching  me,  amusing 
themselves  with  my  desperate  efforts  to  descend  the 
cliff,  and  calculating  upon  trapping  me  when  I  reached 
its  foot. 


140  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

No  sooner  had  I  seen  them  than  the  positive  danger 
restored  my  senses. 

Resistance  was,  however,  useless.  Raising  me  to  my 
feet,  they  commenced  driving  me  down  the  valley. 
Deliberately,  I  say,  "driving."  Nor  was  this  driving 
done  by  any  means  in  a  merciful  fashion.  It  was 
effected  with  heavy  blows  and  sharp  sticks,  which  were 
aimed  at  and  thrust  into  my  ribs  and  sides,  with  no  pity. 

For  the  moment,  however,  I  was  unconscious  of  this. 

The  red  devils  were  going  straight  in  the  direction  of 
our  camp.  Great  God !  If  they  only  did  not  pause 
until  they  arrived  there. 

This  was  a  futile  hope. 

They  paused  about  two  miles  and  a  half  from  the 
place  where  my  boys  were.  With  a  vain  effort  at  being 
heard,  I  gave  vent  to  a  loud  shout.  A  burly  Indian 
struck  me  heavily  across  the  mouth  to  silence  what  he 
haply  considered  my  bravado.  "  I  was  a  white  brave, 
and  I  knew  that  I  must  die."  It  was  natural  red-skin 
reasoning. 

Then  spitting  in  my  face,  he  spoke  briefly  in  their 
guttural  tongue,  and  in  a  few  moments  more  I  had  been 
stripped  of  all  my  clothing,  and  compelled  to  stand  with 
my  feet  about  twenty  inches  apart.  Stakes  were  driven 
into  the  earth  by  the  side  of  these,  to  which  my  legs 
were  tightly  lashed.  Then,  planting  in  the  ground  other 
stakes  at  a  short  distance,  my  arms  were  extended  at 
full  length,  and  bound  to  them.  A  cord  around  my 
neck  was  fastened  to  another  stake  in  my  rear.  In 
addition  to  this,  two  sharpened  stakes  were  planted  di 
rectly  under  my  arm-pits.  It  was  thus  rendered  almost 
impossible  for  me,  even  to  stir. 

No  sooner  had  this  been  effected,  than  the  entertain- 


"  The  braves  would  squat  upon  the  earth  and  rest,  while  their 
squaws  subjected  me  to  more  horrible  tortures  than  the  mind  could 
conceive  without  personal  experience." — Page  141. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  141 

ment,  for  such  they  evidently  considered  it,  com 
menced. 

The  Mahalas  or  squaws  had  been  pointing  splinters 
of  grease -wood,  about  three  inches  in  length.  As  the 
braves  danced  round  me,  whooping,  yelling,  or  singing 
one  of  their  wild  war-songs,  the  squaws  would  strike 
the  pointed  splinters  into  my  flesh  and  leave  them 
sticking  in  it.  After  somewhat  wearying  of  their  share  in 
this  cheerful  pandemonium,  the  braves  would  squat  upon 
the  earth  and  rest,  while  their  squaws  subjected  me  to 
more  horrible  torture  than  the  mind  of  the  white  could 
conceive  without  personal  experience.  Human  excre 
ment  was  thrust  in  my  face,  and  rubbed  over  my  mouth. 
When  they  would  pause  awhile,  it  seemed  as  if  they 
were  only  trying  to  invent  some  more  disgusting  and 
possibly  more  painful  mode  of  torture. 

But  what  is  the  use  of  prolonging  such  a  recital  ? 

This  infernal  orgy  was  kept  up  until  night  set  in, 
when  the  climax  of  their  devilish  fury  was  capped  by 
their  taking  burning  brands  from  the  fires  which  had 
been  kindled,  and  igniting  the  splinters  of  grease-wood 
which  they  had  thrust  in  my  body. 

It  is  absolutely  impossible  by  mere  words  to  convey 
any  idea  of  even  the  tenth  part  of  the  agony  which  this 
caused  me.  Ten  thousand  needles,  red-hot,  seemed  to 
be  piercing  my  flesh  and  stabbing  me  in  every  part  of 
my  body  with  their  lancing  flame. 

Up  to  this  moment,  I  had  not  abandoned  all  hope. 

Perhaps,  the  boys  might  come  up  in  time  to  save  me. 

In  my  now  maddening  suffering,  1  actually  prayed 
that  it  might  end.  Heaping  every  species  of  oppro 
brium  on  the  red  demons,  that  I  could,  in  my  own 
tongue,  I  added  to  them  such  galling  Indian  terms 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 


as  I  had  been  able  to  pick  up  during  my  life  in  the 
West.  These  were  not  over-numerous,  but  they  would 
have  been  more  than  sufficient  to  have  inspired  the  in 
carnate  devils  with  a  greater  fury,  and,  in  a  few  moments 
more,  I  should  have  been  quit  of  all  the  trouble  and 
suffering  of  the  world  in  which  1  had  been  a  dweller. 

As  this  desire  was  surging  incontrollably  above  my 
bodily  agony,  I  heard  the  crack  of  a  dozen  rifles. 

The  same  number  of  the  Indians  dropped  in  the  very 
places  on  which  they  had  been  sitting  or  standing,  and 
I  knew  that  I  was  saved. 


CHAPTER  X. 

• 

BETWEEN  TORTURE  AND  SAFETY — THE  VALUE  OP  POPULARITY — 
UNCLE  SAM'S  BLUE-COATS — A  TRAPPING  EXPEDITION — IN  FOR 
IT— THE  CAPTURE  OF  MY  FIRST  PET  GRIZZLY— SKINNING  AND 
CARVING — u  PROSPECTING  "  FOR  SILVER — A  LIVING  BLANKET — 
DARKNESS  AND  THE  SURPRISE — CARRIED  OFF  AS  A  CAPTIVE — 
OUT  OF  THE  THONGS— THE  BUTT  AND  THE  MUZZLE — WHO  is 
THE  REAL  HERO  ? 

IT  seemed,  that  when  I  had  not  returned  to  the  camp 
by  dusk,  the  boys  had  begun  to  be  somewhat  uneasy  on 
account  of  my  prolonged  absence.  Butch'  Hasbrouck 
then  volunteered  to  hunt  me  up.  Ben  Painter  was  the 
only  one  with  him.  Although  uneasy,  none  of  them  really 
believed  I  was  in  a  serious  difficulty.  If  they  had,  as 
Butch'  subsequently  said,  when,  some  weeks  later,  talk 
ing  the  matter  over  with  me,  they  would  have  had  me 
"  out  of  the  tight  place  I  war  in,  a  good  hour  sooner." 

It  was  not  long  ere  they  heard  the  noise  made  by  the 
howling  and  yelling  devils. 

"  There  war  something  up,"  as  Painter  whispered  to 
Butch'. 

Then  they  crept  nearer. 

On  discovering  the  light  of  the  camp-fires,  and  recog 
nizing  through  the  trees  the  forms  of  the  red-skins  mov 
ing  rapidly  amongst  them,  they  instantaneously  con 
cluded  that  I  had  been  killed,  and  that  the  savages  were 
celebrating  the  event  in  their  own  fashion.  "  By  sheer 
luck,"  as  Painter  expressed  it,  they  did  not  come  near 
enough  the  Campoody  or  Indian  camp  to  discover  me. 


144  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

Had  they  done  so,  they  were  two  men  only,  and  could 
not  have  saved  me,  although  they  might,  or  rather 
would,  beyond  any  doubt,  have  made  my  death  a  some 
what  costly  one  to  the  Indians,  who  would  most  cer 
tainly  have  finished  me  before  their  two  rifles  could  have 
settled  enough  of  the  scoundrels  to  prevent  their  doing  so. 

They  returned  to  the  camp  and  told  Arnold  and  the 
rest  what  they  had  seen. 

If  I  had  previously  any  doubt  of  my  popularity  with 
the  boys,  the  result  of  the  information  thus  given  would 
have  dispelled  it. 

In  an  instant  every  man  was  on  his  legs,  and  in 
another  half-minute,  armed  with  their  rifles  and  revol 
vers,  they  were  following  the  two  scouts  who  had 
located  the  red-skins. 

On  drawing  sufficiently  near,  they  had  discovered  me. 

It  would  be  needless  to  recapitulate  what  I  have  already 
stated.  Their  plan  was  determined  upon,  and  they 
carried  it  fully  out.  Not  a  single  red-skin,  male  or 
female,  nor  even  a  papoose,  was  suffered  to  escape.  In 
deed,  I  believe  that  if  any  of  Uncle  Sam's  Agents  or 
Blue  Coats  had  ventured  to  interfere  with  their  prompt 
judgment,  supposing  they  had  been  on  the  ground,  it 
might  have  gone  badly  enough  with  them,  in  spite  of 
our  presumable  loyalty. 

All  that  night,  I  lay  on  my  blankets,  in  terrible  agony. 
It  seemed  as  if  I  was  losing  my  reason.  A  tough  con 
stitution  and  the  care  of  my  companions,  however, 
brought  me  through  my  suffering.  Let  none  tell  me 
that  men,  rough  as  they  may  be,  are  unfitted  to  attend 
the  sick.  Brighton  Bill  and  Butch'  constituted  them 
selves  not  only  my  medical  men,  but  my  nurses.  They 
never  left  me  for  an  instant.  While  one  ate  or  slept, 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  145 

the  other  was  at  my  side.  Their  rough  hands  were  as 
gentle  with  me,  as  those  of  any  woman  might  have  been. 

Arnold  and  Painter  were  also  unceasing  in  their 
attendance. 

Yet  I  feel  that  I  am  perhaps  wrong  in  particularizing 
any  of  the  Rangers,  when  all  were  so  kind.  Suffice  it, 
therefore,  to  say,  that  after  some  ten  days  I  was  able  to 
stand  once  more  and  move  slowly  about.  The  effects 
of  my  fall,  and  the  Indian  treatment  after  it,  were 
obviated  by  the  more  civilized  care  and  love,  for  I  may 
surely  call  it  so,  the  boys  bestowed  upon  me.  In  some 
thing  less  than  a  fortnight  I  was  able  again  to  ride,  and 
we  started  for  Honey  Lake  Valley. 

On  reaching  it,  winter  was  just  approaching,  and  as 
peace  had  been  promised  by  the  chief  of  the  Pah-utes,  I 
foresaw  there  would  be  little  occupation  for  me  during 
this  season.  So,  after  a  little  talk,  Butch'  Hasbrouck 
and  Brighton  Bill  agreed  to  go  with  me,  on  a  trapping 
expedition  to  the  Humboldt  River.  Providing  ourselves 
with  the  necessary  number  of  traps  and  other  requisites, 
we  in  a  few  days  started,  pitching  our  camp  in  the  Las- 
sen  Meadows,  at  La  Due  Yery's,  generally  known  as  "  Old 
Bible-back,"  on  the  banks  of  that  stream.  For  some 
time  we  were  very  successful;  indeed,  as  we  afterwards 
found,  remarkably  so,  gathering  together  a  large  num 
ber  of  beaver,  otter,  and  other  skins.  Then,  needing  a 
re-supply  of  many  necessary  articles,  we  struck  back  to 
the  valley,  and  finished  the  winter  near  the  Black  Buttes. 
Here  we  had  as  great  a  success  in  trapping  mink,  mar 
ten,  and  foxes. 

It  was  while  we  were  here,  that  I  had  the  satisfaction 
of  killing  my  first  grizzly. 

Early  on  one  sharply  cold  morning  I  had  started  out 
7 


14:6  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

to  make  the  round  of  our  traps.  As  I  entered  a  dense 
cliapparal,  I  saw,  moving  towards  me,  a  large  bear  with 
two  young  cubs.  Of  course  it  was  their  dam,  and  I 
knew  I  was  in  for  it.  If  I  had  taken  to  my  heels,  I  felt 
assured  the  speed  of  the  ungainly  brute  would  exceed 
mine.  There  was  no  large  tree  near,  in  which  I  might 
have  taken  refuge.  She  had  already  seen  me,  and  her 
small,  twinkling  eyes  were  sparkling  like  black  diamonds. 
Naturally,  therefore,  I  could  not  treat  her  to  any  Indian 
strategy. 

The  only  chance  I  had  was  in  my  skill  as  a  marks 
man.  Realizing  this,  I  dropped  upon  one  knee,  and 
raising  my  rifle  to  my  shoulder,  awaited  her  approach. 

She  was  at  this  time  about  twenty  yards  away  from 
me,  advancing  at  a  rapidly  awkward  and  shuffling  run. 

I  waited  until  she  had  lessened  this  distance  probably 
one-half.  Then,  with  my  bead  drawn  behind  her  ear,  I 
let  her  have  my  ball,  and  she  dropped.  It  was  with  no 
small  degree  of  pride  that  I  contemplated  her  large 
size,  for  the  bullet  had  passed  through  her  brain,  as 
clearly  as  in  any  shot  I  ever  made,  and  she  died  in  her 
tracks,  mutely  and  gravely  as  any  Indian  brave,  whose 
death-struggles  have  been  chronicled  by  the  novelist. 
Then,  taking  her  two  cubs  under  my  arms,  I  returned  to 
camp.  Butch'  skinned  the  grizzly.  Bill  on  this  occa 
sion  officiated  as  butcher.  Cutting  out  the  choicest 
parts  of  the  meat,  he  brought  them  back  with  him.  It 
was  lucky  he  did  so,  for  on  visiting  our  traps,  for  the 
second  time  in  that  day,  towards  the  evening,  I  found 
her  bones  picked  tolerably  clean. 

Our  share  of  the  grizzly,  however,  lasted  us  for  four 
days,  and  I  must  say,  choicer  meat  never  crossed  my 
palate. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  147 

On  our  return  to  Honey  Lake  Valley,  I  presented  one 
of  the  two  cubs  to  Governor  Hoop.  The  other,  I  myself 
kept.  At  this  time,  it  was  as  playful  as  a  young  kitten. 
Owing  to  its  youth,  I  was  able  to  thoroughly  tame  it,  so 
that  it  would  follow  me  wherever  I  went,  like  a  spaniel. 
When  it  had  increased  in  size  to  bear's  estate,  I  made  it, 
in  after  life,  my  constant  companion.  Brighton  Bill 
gave  it  the  name  which  stuck  to  it,  of  "  my  body-guard." 

While  we  were  upon  the  Humboldt,  Butch'  and  my 
self  had  discovered  what  we  believed  to  be  silver  ore. 
Brighton  Bill  shared  our  belief. 

When  once  more  near  Honey  Lake,  we  informed  the 
various  members  of  the  Buckskin  Rangers  of  our  dis 
covery. 

All  were  smitten  with  the  usual  fever  resulting  from 
an  intimation  of  the  presence  of  either  of  the  precious 
metals  in  any  locality.  It  was,  therefore,  in  the  spring 
of  1860,  that  we  went  out  and  pitched  our  camp  in  a 
rocky  defile,  to  which  we  gave  the  name  of  Prince  Royal 
Canon.  The  reason  of  our  bestowing  this  title  on  it, 
will,  when  the  date  is  remembered,  be  obvious  to  my 
readers.  We  were  engaged  "  prospecting,"  the  remain 
der  of  the  spring  and  the  succeeding  summer,  having 
located  a  large  number  of  ledges. 

About  September  we  had,  however,  grown  tired  of 
silver-prospecting  without  any  immediate  results,  and 
determined  on  adjourning  our  metal-mining  for  the 
winter.  It  was,  therefore,  decided  that  we  should  visit 
Klamath  Lake  arid  the  Modoc  country  with  the  view  of 
trapping  and  hunting. 

We  accordingly,  at  the  commencement  of  the  follow 
ing  month,  struck  out  for  the  Blue  Mountains,  in  portion 
of  which  range  we  pitched  our  camp  for  the  purpose  of 


148  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

looking  out  for  good  hunting-grounds.  After  talking 
the  matter  well  over,  we  concluded  to  separate.  By  so 
doing,  we  could  hold  the  whole  of  that  portion  of  the 
country,  as  any  good  hunter  and  trapper  can  take  care  of 
ten  miles  square  without  any  other  help.  Some  of  the 
boys  accordingly  went  to  the  Klamath  Lake — others 
I  betook  themselves  to  the  Sierras.  In  fact,  they  were 
scattered  round,  within  no  more  than  a  day's  ride  of 
each  other,  while  I  and  my  pet  bear,  whom  I  had  named 
Charley,  remained  on  the  spot  we  had  originally  camped 
in. 

That  winter  set  in  with  unusual  severity.  It  was,  in 
deed,  the  severest  I  had  yet  known,  through  the  whole 
of  that  region. 

Possibly,  for  twenty  years,  the  one  just  past,  has 
alone  exceeded  it,  whether  in  its  average  temperature 
or  the  amount  of  the  snow  which  fell  and  remained 
upon  the  earth. 

In  the  Blue  Mountains,  the  snow  averaged  from  a 
depth  of  ten  to  eighteen  feet.  It  covered  my  rude  log- 
cabin  so  completely,  that  at  times  it  might  have  been 
difficult  for  me  to  find  it.  Here  it  was  that  my  bear 
first  became  of  positive  value  to  me,  in  addition  to  his 
affording  me  something  like  companionship. 

When  I  left  my  cabin,  I  would  leave  him  behind  to 
keep  house. 

The  result  of  this  was,  that  on  my  return,  I  was  sure 
to  find  him  half-a-mile  or  more  from  home,  to  which  he 
would  pilot  me  unerringly. 

During  the  night,  Charley  always  slept  with  me. 
After  building  a  large  fire,  I  would  lie  down  in  his 
arms  or  rather  fore-paws.  He  was  far  better  than  any 
blanket.  If,  however,  in  my  sleep,  the  fire  had  gone 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  149 

down  and  the  cold  drove  me  unconsciously  closer  to 
him,  than  was  pleasant  to  his  Grizzlyship,  he  would  raise 
his  hind  paw  and  push  me  into  the  middle  of  the  floor. 
Then,  it  would  seem  as  if  a  sense  of  the  duty  he  owed 
his  owner  returned.  He  would  roll  out,  himself,  snuff 
around  me,  and  if  I  kept  quite  still,  which  I  have  fre 
quently  done,  insert  his  nose  under  my  side  and  trundle 
my  apparently  still  slumbering  body  back  upon  the 
bed.  lie  possessed  other  qualities  also,  given  him  by 
nature,  in  which  he  was  eminently  my  superior. 

His  hearing  was  wonderfully  acute.  Of  a  sudden,  he 
would  start  out  of  the  cabin,  with  a  quick  look  of  in 
telligence  that  was  well-nigh  human.  After  nosing 
around,  if  everything  was  quiet,  he  would  slink  back, 
with  an  unmistakably  sheepish  look.  Coining  up  to 
me,  he  would  lick  my  hands  and  face.  It  was  precisely 
as  if  he  had  said : 

"  Don't  kick  up  a  row,  old  boy  !  I  was  wrong  and  I 
know  it.  But,  it  is  all  for  the  best,  I  should  keep  a 
bright  look-out.  My  ears  are  quicker  than  yours,  you 
know." 

If,  however,  on  leaving  the  cabin,  any  game,  or  a  man 
should  happen  to  be  near  it,  he  would  utter  a  continu 
ous  low  growl  until  I  joined  him. 

One  day  he  displayed  his  sagacity  in  an  even  stronger 
manner.  I  had  gone  out  with  my  rifle  in  the  mom  ing 
and  did  not  return  until  the  middle  of  the  afternoon. 
It  was  at  considerably  greater  distance  than  usual  from 
our  dwelling  that  he  met  me.  He  would  not,  however, 
accompany  me  directly  back,  but  shambled  off  with  his 
rapid  and  swinging  gait  to  a  considerable  distance. 
Knowing  he  wanted  me  to  see  something,  1  followed 
him  almost  as  rapidly.  Suddenly,  he  came  to  a  dead 


150  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

lialt.  "VYlien  I  joined  him,  I  learnt  the  reason  for  this 
strange  proceeding  on  Charley's  part.  I  had  come 
upon  soine  half-dozen  or  more  moccasin-tracks,  which 
led  directly  towards  my  cabin. 

Of  course,  I  now  proceeded  with  great  caution,  as  he 
also  did. 

About  a  hundred  yards  from  the  entrance,  I  however 
found  precisely  the  same  number  of  moccasin-tracks, 
bearing  in  an  entirely  different  direction.  They  very 
evidently  led  directly  from  the  spot  to  which  the  others 
had  been  going. 

As  I  was  examining  them, his  juvenile  Grizzlyship low 
ered  his  quaint  head  above  them,  and  as  evidently  scru 
tinized  them  with  even  greater  inteiitness  than  I  had  done. 

Then,  he  gave  a  low  growl.  It  was  exactly  as  if  he 
had  uttered  the  phrase  of — 

"  All  right ! " 

After  this,  dropping  all  semblance  of  caution,  and 
shaking  himself  as  a  huge  dog  might,  he  shuffled  off 
hurriedly  to  the  hole  in  the  snow  which  led  to  his  and 
my  habitation.  When  I  entered  it,  he  was  circling 
round  the  whole  of  the  somewhat  narrow  interior, 
smelling  in  every  part,  and  repeating,  from  time  to  time, 
the  low  growl  I  have  just  alluded  to  as  so  significant. 

It  would  be  unnecessary  to  say,  I  did  not  enjoy  a  par 
ticularly  sound  slumber  that  night. 

That  the  owners  of  these  moccasins  were  Indians,  it 
was  impossible  to  doubt. 

If,  as  some  say  the  red  men  are  able  to  do,  I  am 
unable  to  detect  the  moccasined  foot-print  of  one  tribe 
from  that  of  another,  I  can  at  any  rate  tell  whether  the 
foot  within  the  moccasin  may  chance  to  be  a  white  one. 
These  were  not.  Of  this  I  had  been,  at  once,  assured. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  151 

But  why  had  they  visited  my  hole  in  the  snow,  and  why 
had  they  afterwards  left  it  ?  This  last  question  I  was 
unable  satisfactorily  to  settle. 

In  any  case,  it  was  necessary  to  let  the  other  boys 
know  red-skins  were  around.  Accordingly,  breaking 
my  fast  early,  I  started  towards  Brighton  Bill's  cabin, 
as  he  was  my  next-door  neighbor,  living  merely  at  a 
distance  of  some  iifteen  miles.  Arriving  there  in  the 
forenoon,  I  found  him  seated  by  a  roaring  fire.  But 
scarcely  had  I  stepped  within  his  door,  than  he  was  on 
his  feet  with  his  rifle,  which  had  been  between  his  knees, 
cocked,  raised,  and  pointed  at  me.  It  was,  however,  as 
rapidly  dropped. 

"  By  'eaven,  Mose,  H'i  thought  you  was  han  H'ingin." 

"  The  Indians  brought  me  here,  Bill !  " 

"  The  blasted  red  devils  turned  hup  'ere,  when  H'i 
was  hout  yesterday." 

"  So  they  did,  in  my  cabin.  We  ought  to  let  the  other 
boys  know,  and  decide  upon  what  had  best  be  done." 

"  Butch'  will  be  'ere  this  morning.  H'i  seed  'im  honly 
yesterday,"  said  Bill.  "  Hif  you  like,  H'i  will  go  hand 
fetch  hup  some  of  the  hother  chaps." 

"  I  think,  it  would  be  better." 

"  Very  well,  Cap  !     Ili'rn  hoff." 

Putting  on  his  snow-shoes,  he  started  immediately. 

He  had  scarcely  left  me  for  twenty  minutes,  when  I 
heard  a  slight  noise  on  the  snow  without.  Seizing  my 
rifle,  I  moved  cautiously  to  the  door,  when  something 
heavy  leaped  against  me,  which  very  nearly  reduced  me 
to  a  prostrate  position.  It  was  my  bear  Charley,  who 
had  thought  proper  to  follow  rne.  We  retired  within 
the  cabin,  which  was  considerably  larger  than  mine. 
Bill  was  in  a  slight  degree  inclined  to  grandeur  and 


152  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

luxury,  if  there  can  be  such  things  in  a  log-hut.  There, 
in  company,  we  resigned  ourselves  to  expectation.  All 
at  once  the  Grizzly  raised  his  head.  Yes!  I  had  heard 
it,  too.  It  was  the  movement  of  snow-shoes.  A  few 
moments  after,  Butch'  entered. 

On  the  preceding  day,  he  also  had  seen  Indian  tracks 
around  his  dwelling. 

In  the  afternoon,  Brighton  Bill  reappeared.  He  had 
seen  Harry  Arnold,  and  told  him  to  see  his  nearest 
neighbor,  and  send  word  to  the  other  Rangers,  bidding 
them  to  repair  immediately  to  my  quarters. 

After  a  hasty  feed  on  some  jerked  deer,  we  then  set 
out  for  my  dwelling.  Darkness  had  settled  on  us,  long 
before  we  reached  it;  and,  but  for  the  chilly  sheen 
of  the  sheet  which  draped  the  earth  with  its  spotless 
white,  it  might  have  been  difficult  to  keep  the  track. 

Yet  I  am  wrong.  In  any  case,  Charley's  unerring 
scent  would  have  proved  a  sure  guide.  Why  it  was, 
however,  I  can  scarcely  say,  save  that  he  had  con 
fidence  in  our  numbers,  but  certainly,  on  this  occasion, 
he  uttered  no  warning  growl ;  and  scarcely  had  we 
descended  through  the  sloping  snow  to  the  doorway  than 
two  powerful  arms  were  thrown  about  me.  I  heard 
Bill's  voice  roar : 

"  Look  hout,  Mose ! " 

We  were  in  the  grip  of  the  red-skins. 

The  struggle  was  furious  but  brief.  Our  assailants 
had  been  joined  by  a  dozen  other  Indians,  who  had  been 
lurking  without,  and  it  was  not  long  before  we  had  our 
hands  tied  behind  us,  and  we  were  on  our  way  to  Goose 
Lake. 

Before  starting,  it  must  frankly  be  said,  that  with  the 
usual  red  instinct  for  appropriating  everything  which 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  153 

comes  in  their  way,  my  cabin  had  been  thoroughly 
gutted.  Ammunition,  provision,  blankets — nay,  every 
thing  portable — and  there  was  nothing  which  was  not 
portable  in  it — had  become  the  property  of  the  copper- 
colored  rascals. 

Placing  me  in  front,  and  Butch'  and  Bill  behind  me, 
in  regular  Indian  file,  they  kept  on  either  side  of  us, 
forcing  us  to  hurry  on  as  speedily  as  they  could  compel 
us  to  move. 

It  was  impossible  for  me  to  forget  my  past  experience, 
and  I  mentally  resolved,  if  I  were  able  to  ,do  so,  that  I 
would  sell  my  life  in  square  fight,  rather  than  undergo 
a  second  time  the  torture  to  which  I  had  then  been 
subjected.  At  last,  there  seemed  a  chance  for  doing  so. 
We  had  been  compelled  to  move  along  at  a  smart  trot 
for  some  six  or  seven  hours,  so  far  as  I  was  able  to  meas 
ure  time,  when,  from  what  cause  I  cannot  say,  although 
it  was  probably  the  continual  friction,  I  felt  that  the 
ligature  round  my  wrists  was  sensibly  looser.  My 
hands  were  able  to  slip  through  the  thongs.  I  dared 
not  tell  either  of  my  companions  what  I  had  done,  and 
ask  them  whether  or  not  they  might  be  able  to  do  the 
same.  Some  of  the  red  rascals  might  understand  Eng 
lish.  One  or  more  of  them  might  even  be  renegade 
whites.  What  could  I  do  to  release  them  ?  The  idea 
came  to  me  like  a  flash  of  lightning.  Pretending  to 
stumble,  I  pitched  forward,  and  recovering  myself,  got 
a  blow  on  my  face  from  one  of  our  captors.  It  was  ap 
parently  from  one  of  the  same  thongs  with  which  our 
wrists  had  been  bound.  Then,  I  uttered  a  shrill  and 
prolonged  cry  as  if  of  pain. 

After  this,  I  found  myself  the  last  of  the  three. 

Two  minutes  had  scarcely  passed,  and  Bill's  hands 
7* 


154  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

had  been  freed.  Mine  had  untied  the  thongs  which 
bound  them.  He  would  have  wit  enough  to  loose 
Butch'.  Life  on  the  Plains  and  in  the  great  West, 
sharpens  man's  mother-wit  wonderfully. 

Day  was  not  yet  breaking. 

That  heavy  darkness  was  upon  us,  which  so  generally 
precedes  dawn. 

At  this  very  moment  we  came  to  some  low  foot-hills, 
where  the  timber  was  dense  and  thick.  We  were 
obliged  to  move  more  slowly.  My  friends  had  just 
crossed  a  log,  and  the  Indian  on  the  left  of  me  was 
stepping  over  it,  when  I  fetched  him  with  my  clenched 
fist  a  violent  blow  under  his  ear.  At  any  rate,  I  felt 
that  was  the  place  in  which  I  struck  him. 

As  he  reeled  and  fell,  I  wrenched  the  gun  from  his 
hands,  shouting  out, 

"  Now's  your  time,  boys." 

The  brute  instinct  of  self-preservation  answered  for 
their  closely  following,  without  knowing  that  they  did 
so,  my  action.  In  another  instant  we  were  clubbing 
right  and  left,  and  so  soon  as  we  could  change  our  guns 
for  some  that  had  not  been  injured  by  such  an  employ 
ment,  we  commenced  shooting.  Scarcely  had  I  heard 
the  report  of  my  first  shot  than  I  felt  two  vigorous  arms 
thrown  around  my  waist.  They  were  lifting  me  from 
the  ground,  probably  for  the  purpose  of  dashing  me  to 
the  earth,  when  they  suddenly  relaxed  their  grip.  A 
madly  wild  yell  broke  from  the  lips  of  that  Indian, 
mingled  with  a  ringingly  fierce  growl  which  I  at  once 
recognized,  although  I  had  never  before  heard  it  so 
savagely  shapen,  as  Charley's  voice. 

My  pet  had  followed  on  our  track,  and  was  actually 
assisting  us  in  rescuing  ourselves. 


"  My  pet  had  followed  in  our  track,  and  was  actually  assisting  us 
to  rescue  ourselves." — Page  154. 


BUCKSKIN   HOSE.  155 

Strangely  enough,  since  the  moment  in  which  we  had 
first  found  ourselves  captives  and  were  marched  away  in 
the  fashion  I  have  above  described,  no  thought  of  Griz 
zly's  absence  from  my  side  had  ever  crossed  my  mind. 
His  memory  had  however  been  better  than  mine.  Per 
haps,  when  all  circumstances  are  fairly  considered,  it 
had  some  reason  for  being  so. 

After  a  very  brief  struggle,  the  wholly  unexpected 
assault  of  their  three  prisoners,  and  their  four-footed  or 
four-handed  ally,  on  the  red  devils,  resulted  in  a  com 
plete  victory. 

The  yet  living  Indians  cleared  out,  leaving  us  mas 
ters  of  the  field.  As  the  day  was  now  gradually  break 
ing,  we  were  enabled  to  count  the  dead,  and  exercise  a 
proprietary  right  in  their  scalps.  What  was  of  much 
more  advantage  to  myself,  I  was  enabled  to  recapture 
nearly  the  whole  of  my  stolen  property,  as  well  as  a 
number  of  guns,  corresponding  with  that  of  the  dead, 
which  necessarily  changed  hands. 

Eight  of  the  scoundrels  would  have  110  more  chance 
of  troubling  their  white  brethren. 

This  enumeration  includes  the  one  whom  Charley  had 
so  considerately  squeezed  out  of  this  life,  very  much,  as 
Butch'  afterwards  remarked — 

"  As  a  younker  squeezes  a  ripe  orange." 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon,  when" we  arrived  again 
at  my  cabin.  Upon  entering  the  hole  in  the  snow  which 
led  to  it,  we  found  Harry  Arnold,  Ben  Painter,  and 
many  of  the  boys  there.  They  had  preceded  our  com 
ing  by  some  twenty  minutes.  The  footprints  visible  on 
the  outside  of  my  dwelling,  as  well  as  the  thoroughly 
emptied  condition  of  its  interior,  had  readily  given  them 
a  thorough  apprehension  of  our  condition.  When  we 


156  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

returned,  they  were  on  the  point  of  preparing  to  follow 
on  the  trail  of  the  red  savages. 

Of  course,  we  had  to  relate  our  adventures  since  the 
preceding  night.  This,  however,  did  not  take  long,  as 
the  demands  of  famished  nature  were  too  exacting.  We 
had  tasted  neither  bite  nor  sup  since  noon  on  the  pre 
ceding  day. 

I  may  here  state,  that  much  to  the  mortification  of 
Butch'  and  Brighton  Bill,  as  well  as  somewhat  to  my 
own,  it  became  evident  that  the  Rangers  considered  my 
young  Grizzly  as  the  real  hero  of  the  occasion.  Indeed, 
Painter  proposed  to  give  him  a  horn  of  old  Eye,  and 
would  have  done  so,  had  I  not  peremptorily  forbidden 
it,  not  only  on  the  score  of  its  possible  effects  upon  his 
innocent  inside,  but  also  because  our  stock  of  that  nec 
essary  article  was  getting  very  low. 

After  our  meal,  which  I  ate  ravenously,  and  presume 
the  two  who  had  been  my  fellow-captives  did  the  same, 
"  Long  "  Dorsey  (he  stood  six  feet  two,  in  his  stockings) 
and  Lute  Spencer  arrived.  Some  minutes  after,  we 
heard  a  voice  whistling  the  familiar  tune  "  Joe  Bowers." 
This  was  "  small "  Tom  Harvey,  who  had  lingered  in 
their  rear.  Seeing  they  had  entered  without  exciting 
any  commotion  within  the  cabin,  he  concluded  no  In 
dians  were  in  the  immediate  neighborhood.  Otherwise, 
he  would  undoubtedly  have  refrained  from  allowing  his 
lips  this  exercise. 

We  were  told  by  Lute  Spencer  that  they  had  paused 
at  Bob  Thorn's  cabin  by  the  way.  He  was  more  gener 
ally  known  by  his  intimates  and  associates  as  Dirty 
Bob. 

"  The  place  war  gutted,  as  you  say  yours  war,"  con- 
tin  ued  Lute,  "and  Bob  war  nowhere." 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  157 

"The  red  devils  had  been  there,"  added  Dorsey. 
"  We  counted  the  tracks  of  some  ten  of  them." 

Fatigued  as  I  was,  I  at  once  proposed  starting  for 
Bob's  cabin.  The  memory  I  have  already  alluded  to, 
gave  me  a  sharp  twinge  of  commiseration  for  any 
unlucky  fellow  who  might  be  treated  to  a  similar  phase 
of  personal  experience. 


CHAPTER  XL 

LOTS  OF  PLUCK— ONE  OP  THE  RANGERS  KILLED— THINKING  OF 
A  BROTHER — TAKING  A  GOOD  POSITION— Loss  OF  HAIR,  AND 
WHAT  THE  RED-SKINS  THINK  OF  IT — "CAPTAIN  JACK'S"  OR 
THE  MODOC  COUNTRY — "CAPTAIN  JACK'S"  STRONGHOLD— ON 
OUR  WAY  BACK— SIGNAL-FIRES  AND  SOME  STRATEGY— HALF 
A  HUNDRED  SCALPS  FOR  ONE — THE  PAH-UTES  ON  THE  WAR 
PATH — FISHING  FOR  THE  DEAD — THE  WHITE  FLAG— WASHO 
BRAVERY. 

BOB'S  location  was  at  some  thirty  miles'  distance  from 
my  cabin,  and  we  arrived  there,  shortly  after  the  daz 
zling  rays  of  the  morning  sun  were  blind  ingly  increased 
in  strength  by  the  reflection  from  the  snow. 

Spencer  and  Dorsey  had  told  us  the  bare  fact. 
Butch',  however,  had  a  keener  nose  than  they  apparently 
possessed. 

"Dirty  Bob  fit  well  for  it,"  he  said,  after  glancing 
through  the  cabin.  "  Some  of  the  red  skunks  war  hurt, 
and  no  mistake.  He  al'ays  had  lots  o'  pluck." 

He  was  unmistakably  right.  There  were  marks  of 
blood  on  the  hard  soil  of  the  floor.  But,  whether  the 
soaked  in  and  dead  crimson  had  once  run  in  his  veins 
or  those  of  his  Indian  enemies,  remained  to  be  seen. 
We  almost  at  once  struck  their  trail,  which  led  through 
the  forest,  beyond  the  spot  he  had  selected  for  his  hunt 
ing-ground.  This  we  followed,  for  something  more  than 
six  miles.  The  track  was  by  no  means  an  easy  one, 
rising  and  falling,  broken  up  by  rocks  and  intersected 
with  the  stumps  of  fallen  trees.  In  short,  it  was  one 
which  none  of  the  delicate  nurslings  of  city  civilization 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  159 

would  have  cared  about  following,  even  for  the  purpose 
of  pulling  trigger  at  their  first  live  venison,  and,  of  ne 
cessity,  missing  it. 

Arnold  and  Painter  were  in  advance. 

The  fatigue  of  the  past  two  days  and  night  had  kept 
me  somewhat  in  the  rear  of  the  party,  with  Butch'  and 
"  Fatty." 

Painter  uttered  a  savage  oath. 

We  ran  up  to  him.  He  and  Arnold  were  standing 
close  to  the  body  of  poor  Bob.  His  knife,  smeared  with 
dried  or  frozen  blood,  was  still  clenched  in  the  hands  of 
the  corpse,  which  was  frightfully  mutilated.  It  had  also 
been  scalped.  Evidently,  his  death  had  been  the  result 
of  a  vigorous  struggle  to  escape;  for  the  snow  on  which 
he  was  lying  was  crushed  in  and  trodden  down  in  every 
direction ;  while  a  young  tree  had  been  torn  from  its 
roots  by  the  force  with  which  some  one  had  fallen 
against  it.  Glancing  at  Ben  Painter,  I  saw  that  his 
teeth  were  set  tightly  together,  and  his  under  lip,  which 
his  beard  permitted  me  to  see,  was  rigid  and  almost 
blue.  I  took  him  by  the  hand  and  squeezed  it. 

"  I  war  thinking  of  my  brother." 

This  was  all  he  said,  as  we  continued  upon  the  trail. 

From  this  point,  it  could  very  readily  be  followed. 
The  marks  of  blood  were  visible  enough  all  along  it. 
One  or  more  of  the  red-skins  had  been  wounded.  In 
about  half  a  mile  further,  the  road  became  easier  and 
the  trees  were  more  scattered.  Arnold,  who  was  still  in 
front  with  Painter,  and  Brighton  Bill,  had  sighted  what 
they  supposed  to  be  a  dead  Indian. 

"Here's  one  of  them,"  cried  Arnold. 

Scarcely  had  he  uttered  this  than,  wounded  as  he  was, 
the  savage  leapt  to  his  feet  and  ran.  His  strength,  how- 


160  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

ever,  only  availed  him  for  a  short  spurt.  He  again 
dropped,  and,  while  on  the  ground,  drew  his  bow.  The 
arrow  struck  Bill  on  the  left  arm,  making  a  slight  flesh 
wound.  But  before  the  red  devil  could  discharge 
another,  Ben  Painter  was  up  with  him,  and  the  knife 
he  had  drawn  was  buried  in  his  heart.  On  examining 
the  dead  body,  we  discovered  the  wound  Bob  had  in 
flicted  on  its  side.  Blood  was  still  slowly  oozing  from 
it. 

From  this  point,  the  trail  diverged  towards  the  Lower 
Klamath  Lake.  We  followed  on  it  as  rapidly  as  possi 
ble,  passing  Shasta  Mountain,  until  we  arrived  at  Fall 
River.  Beyond  this  stream  lies  the  country,  which  is  the 
stronghold  of  the  Modoc  and  Pit-River  tribes. 

It  is  certainly  a  fitting  section  to  have  such  an  ap 
pellation  applied  to  it. 

Throughout,  it  is  covered  with  natural  fortifications. 
Huge  rocks  rise  from  the  earth,  varying  from  two  hun 
dred  to  three  hundred  and  fifty  feet  in  height.  A 
single  precipitous  and  narrow  path,  sometimes  natural, 
not  unfrequently  fashioned  by  the  Modocs  or  their  trib 
utaries,  the  Pit-River  Indians,  who  are  by  no  means  as 
warlike,  leads  to  the  top  of  these.  Here,  in  many  cases, 
the  summit  is  defended  by  a.  breastwork.  In  the  beds 
of  lava,  for  this  part  of  the  country  has  formerly  been 
volcanic,  you  will  also  occasionally  come  upon  a  triangle 
of  rocks,  from  four  to  six  feet  in  height,  with  a  steep 
cavity  in  their  centre,  large  enough  in  every  case  to  ad 
mit  a  man,  and  frequently  much  larger.  The  reasons 
of  these  curious  formations  I  leave  to  more  inquiringly 
scientific  minds  than  my  own.  They  are  certainly  too 
numerous,  as  well  as  now  too  low,  to  be  supposed  the 
series  of  small  craters  from  which  lava  formerly  flowed. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  161 

Even  in  saying  this,  I  feel  I  am  getting  beyond  my 
depth. 

Let  me,  therefore,  confine  myself  to  the  details  of  ac 
tions  which  I  am  assuredly  able  to  speak  of,  from  tho 
mere  fact  that  I  very  decidedly  took  part  in  them. 

We  had  followed  the  Modocs  as  far  as  Battle  Creek. 

Here,  knowing  the  situation  they  intended  to  trap  us 
into,  we  halted  for  two  days,  in  order  to  give  ourselves 
some  rest,  and  enable  a  portion  of  the  Rangers  whom 
our  speed  had  outstripped  to  catch  up  with  us. 

On  the  second  day  we  consulted  together  for  a  long 
time.  This  council  was  the  first  in  which  my  advice 
had  not  been  immediately  taken  by  the  Rangers,  with 
out  any  opposition. 

It  was,  that  we  should  make  what  a  military  tactician 
would  call  a  feint. 

In  other  words,  we  should  seem  to  retire  as  if  we  did 
not  dare  to  carry  the  pursuit  any  further.  During  the 
succeeding  night  we  might  return,  and,  under  its  cover, 
secure  one  of  the  best  positions  in  the  section  of  coun 
try  immediately  beyond  Fall  River. 

Harry  Arnold  and  Lute  Spencer  decidedly  objected 
to  this.  They  asserted  that  it  would  be  the  first  time  in 
which  we  had  ever  backed  from  any  number  of  the 
"  darned  red  skunks."  Many  of  the  others  agreed  with 
them,  amongst  whom  were  Butch'  and  "  Fatty." 

Painter,  however,  greatly  to  my  surprise,  in  the  teeth 
of  their  opposition,  took  my  side  of  the  question,  as  did 
Brighton  Bill.  Laying  his  broad  hand  on  my  shoulder, 
the  latter  said : 

"  The  Cap's  more  nor  'arf  ha  Hinjun.  Hi'll  be  blamed 
hif  'e  hisn't  right !  " 

At  length  we  carried  the  day,  and  broke  np  our  camp 


If)  2  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

on  the  following  morning.  Upon  the  same  night  we 
returned,  moving  with  the  greatest  silence  and  caution, 
securing  a  position  admirably  adapted  for  my  purpose. 
Part  of  the  ifangers  took  possession  of  one  of  the  nat 
ural  forts  which  commanded  an  area  of  some  two  hun 
dred  yards  in  width.  The  rest  of  us  were  posted  in  a 
series  of  the  triangular  pits  opposite  this  position. 
Their  duty  was  similar  to  that  of  sharpshooters,  al 
though  I  may  say  not  a  single  Ranger  would  have  been 
unfit  for  such  a  duty,  or  would  have  failed  in  it. 

It  wras  a  little  after  daybreak,  when  we  first  caught 
sight  of  a  party  of  the  Modocs.  These  counted  barely 
ten.  They  had  evidently  come  out  to  see  whether  we 
had  quitted  our  late  position  by  Battle  Creek. 

Nothing  was  to  be  seen  of  us.  The  Creek  was  visible. 
Consequently  returning,  they  halted  immediately  be 
tween  the  rock  on  which  part  of  our  number  were  en 
camped  and  the  rifle-pits  opposite.  From  this  spot  they 
despatched  a  runner  to  warn  the  remainder  of  the  red 
skins.  So  far,  everything  had  worked  rightly.  In  some 
twenty  minutes  more  fifty  or  sixty  of  the  remaining 
Modocs  had  joined  their  scouting  party. 

They  were  together,  some  pointing  in  the  direction 
they  supposed  us  to  have  taken,  and  others  talking,  it 
may  be  presumed,  on  the  wisdom  of  following  us,  when 
I  gave  the  word. 

We  all  had  Sharp's  carbines.  Indeed,  these  were  our 
invariable  fighting  weapons.  Throwing  in  cartridge 
after  cartridge,  we  kept  up  an  almost  continuous  fire. 
Those  who  escaped  our  balls,  scattered  in  every  possible 
direction. 

Forty-three  of  the  red-skins  had  been  slain. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  163 

After  taking  their  scalps,  we  started  off  in  the  direc 
tion  of  Pit  Hiver. 

Here,  possibly,  the  reader  may  feel  some  shrinking 
horror  at  the  constant  repetition  made  by  me,  of  this,  to 
his  mind,  unpleasantly  barbaric  proceeding.  Let  him 
remember  that  the  unscalped  Indian  is  supposed,  by  his 
red  brethren,  to  hold  a  higher  rank  in  the  Happy  Hunt 
ing  Grounds  of  his  belief  than  the  one  who  has  lost  his 
hair.  He  will  then  form  some  idea  of  the  reason  for 
which  the  white  ranger  or  scout  invariably  scalps  the 
red-skin  who  has  fallen  under  his  ball. 

When  we  were  near  old  Fort  Crook,  a  signal-fire  was 
seen,  far  to  our  left. 

Having  advised  with  Arnold,  he  and  Bill  ascended 
the  mountain  nearest  us,  to  answer  it  from  that  point. 
Crossing  the  valley  to  the  further  side,  I  repeated  the 
answering  signal  from  the  opposite  hill.  Then,  passing 
the  low  "divide"  or  range  of  insignificantly  steep 
ground  between  Pit  and  Fall  Rivers,  we  once  more 
started  a  signal-tire,  on  the  highest  point  we  could  find. 

All  that  seemed  at  the  moment  left  for  us  to  do,  was 
to  conceal  ourselves  and  wait  what  might  next  turn  up. 
While  hidden,  Brighton  Bill  touched  my  arm. 

"Hi'm  blamed  hif  the  red  rascals  harn't  hat  hit 
hagain." 

His  eyes  had  been  quicker  than  mine  or  any  of  the 
rest  of  us.  Another  signal  had  been  kindled  on  a  large 
bald  or  bare  mountain  on  our  left,  and  slightly  in  our 
rear.  Butch'  was  sent  to  a  hill  lying  some  half  of  a 
mile  to  our  right,  to  answer  this.  He  was  one  of  the 
quietest  scouts  amongst  the  Rangers ;  and  saying  this,  is 
paying  him  a  high  compliment,  when  all  of  us  had  learnt 
to  be  so  apt  and  ready.  He  had  been,  on  this  occasion, 


164  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

selected  by  me,  because  the  last  signal-fire  had  ignited 
so  near  to  us,  that  caution  and  care  were  absolutely 
necessary  in  him  who  replied  to  it,  to  prevent  any  de 
tection  of  the  white  man  who  might  be  employed  to 
kindle  it.  W e  waited  for  his  reply  some  time.  Almost 
immediately  after  it  was  seen  by  us,  the  smoke  from  an 
answer  to  it  was  seen  upon  a  low  hill  to  the  right  of  our 
ambuscade.  There  was  certainly  no  possibility  of  mis 
taking  the  meaning  of  this  signal.  It  was  an  inquiry 
whether  the  friends  who  had  so  kindly  answered  them 
were  "  on  our  trail  I " 

We  were  waiting  for  Hasbrouck  to  come  back,  when 
we  saw  in  the  gathering  gloom  the  crimson  light  of 
another  signal-fire,  farther  up  the  valley. 

Without  coming  back  for  new  orders,  Butch'  had 
exercised  his  own  judgment.  He  had  displayed  his 
rapidity  of  decision  and  accuracy  of  calculation,  in  what 
he  had  done. 

He  had  not  yet  returned  when  I  saw  a  party  of 
Indians,  numbering  in  all,  from  twenty  to  twenty-five, 
stringing,  with  great  care  and  silence,  up  the  valle}r. 
Quite  unconscious  of  our  ambush,  they  advanced  right 
into  it. 

But,  that  the  boys  fired  too  soon,  not  a  single  one  of 
the  luckless  red-skins  would  have  escaped. 

As  it  was,  eight  of  them  paid  the  penalty  of  having 
mistaken  our  signal-fires  for  those  of  their  own  friends. 
In  almost  a  word,  I  may  say  that  the  slaughter  of  fifty- 
one  Modocs  had  atoned  for  the  death  of  our  luckless 
associate,  Bob  Thorn. 

His  was  the  first  name  wiped  out  from  the  Buck 
skin  Rangers,  and,  after  we  had  punished  the  tribe 
which  had  taken  his  life,  not  unnaturally,  his  memory 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  165 

was  frequently  recalled  by  most  of  us,  with  sor 
row. 

I  was  possibly  the  only  one  of  the  Rangers  that 
remembered  the  close  of  his  life,  with  something  ap 
proaching  pleasure.  The  dead  man  had  been  enabled 
by  it,  to  escape  that  most  horrible  of  dooms,  as  I  was 
too  well  aware,  the  slow  death  at  the  stake. 

About  the  end  of  February,  we  once  more  reached 
the  settlement  at  the  lower  end  of  Honey  Lake.  We 
were  enabled  to  carry  with  us  a  fair  stock  of  skins,  or 
as  the  traders  call  them,  "  peltry." 

These  we  disposed  of  at  a  reasonable  and  remunera 
tive  figure.  No  sooner  had  we  done  so,  than  after  a 
few  days'  idleness  spent  with  friends  and  acquaintances, 
the  larger  part  of  us  decided  upon  returning  to  our 
silver  lodes  upon  the  Ilumboldt  River.  The  truth  is, 
that  during  the  past  fall  and  winter,  the  report  of  our 
success  in  prospecting  for  ore  in  that  locality,  had 
spread  far  and  wide.  It  had  exercised  the  usual  charm 
which  the  news  of  such  a  discovery  invariably  does. 
If  we  had  delayed  in  the  occupancy  of  our  claims,  we 
might,  in  the  sequel,  have  found  them  a  subject  of  dis 
pute.  The  law  of  the  mines  is  an  unwritten  one.  Con 
sequently,  its  strictness  in  some  points  is  only  equalled 
by  its  vagueness  in  others.  Here  our  luck  was  various 
enough,  but  on  the  whole  we  fairly  prospered.  Noth 
ing  of  particular  account,  however,  presents  itself  for 
me  to  put  on  record,  save  the  presence  of  my  friends 
and  his  Grizzlyship,  my  now  considerably  large  pet, 
Charley. 

On  returning  from  our  life  at  these  mines,  we  spent 
the  whole  of  the  following  winter  in  the  valley  or  at 
Susan  ville. 


166  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

It  would  be  useless  to  inquire  into  the  reason  of  our 
doing  so.  Possibly  we  were  lazy,  or  more  probably 
had  reaped  too  much  profit  from  mining  and  trapping, 
during  the  past  year.  However,  there  were  no  Indian 
troubles  that  season.  There  may  be  an  equal  chance 
that  this  was  the  reason  of  our  comparative  inactivity. 

The  succeeding  winter,  that  of  1861  and  '62,  will  be 
remembered  by  all  old  Californians  as  one  of  the  most 
severe  which  had  ever  occurred  in  that  part  of  our 
country.  The  mountains  were  closed  very  early,  so 
early,  indeed,  that  few  or  none  of  the  settlers  in  the 
up-lands  had  got  in  their  winter  supplies.  They  were 
actually  shut  in  by  the  heavy  snow-falls,  from  the  possi 
bility  of  doing  so. 

In  addition  to  this  trouble,  our  old  enemies,  the  Pah- 
ute  Indians,  had  again  become  restless. 

Possibly,  Uncle  Sam  had  forgotten  to  purchase  their 
forbearance.  At  any  rate,  they  were  again  upon  the 
war-path,  for  the  purpose  of  stealing  stock. 

My  first  knowledge  of  this  arose  from  the  following 
occurrence : 

A  lame  man,  named  Thomas  Bear,  was  at  this  period 
keeping  the  Deep  Hole  Spring  Station,  on  the  Hum- 
bold  t  road.  He  chanced  to  be  in  the  valley  upon  busi 
ness,  when  some  travellers  from  the  Humboldt  passed 
through  it,  on  their  way  to  Susan ville.  In  passing  Deep 
Hole,  they  had  paused  at  the  Station.  It  was  to  find  it 
deserted  and  plundered  of  almost  everything  which  an 
Indian  would  be  likely  to  take.  The  floor  was  marked 
with  numerous  stains  of  blood,  and  there  were  unmis 
takable  signs  visible,  which  clearly  told  them  a  savage 
struggle  had  recently  taken  place  there.  Meeting  Tom, 
they  recounted  these  facts  to  him. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  167 

He  had  known  me  for  some  three  years,  and  hunting 
me  up — for  if  anywhere  in  this  end  of  Honey  Lake 
Yalley,  no  man  was  very  difficult  to  find, — asked  me  to 
accompany  him  to  the  Station,  to  discover  what  was  the 
matter.  The  request  was  a  natural  one,  and  I  at  once 
complied  with  it. 

From  snow  the  roads  were  almost  impassable,  save 
on  foot.  I,  nevertheless,  set  out  with  my  lame  com 
panion  on  this  pleasant  tramp. 

While  resting  during  the  night  at  George  Laithrop's 
Ranch,  as  a  matter  of  course,  I  explained  the  facts 
which  induced  me  to  accompany  Bear.  A  young  lad 
no  more  than  sixteen  years  of  age  overheard  me,  and 
wished  to  go  with  us.  In  fact,  he  displayed  such  a  de 
termination  to  make  a  third  in  our  party,  that  I  could 
not  refuse  him. 

"  You  must  get  a  rifle  from  Laithrop,"  I  said,  when 
he  asked  me  to  take  him  with  us. 

"  I've  one  of  my  own,  and  a  Colt's  six-mouthed  bark 
er,  too,"  was  his  reply. 

"  If  so,  you  can  come  with  us." 

On  the  next  morning,  we  started  again,  Tom,  the 
boy,  and  myself.  Little  trouble  was  anticipated  by  me 
from  the  red-skins,  in  spite  of  what  Bear  had  heard. 
The  road  from  the  Humboldt  was  so  constantly  trav 
elled  over,  and  lay  so  much  out  of  the  usual  line  of 
their  depredations,  that  I  was  almost  disinclined  to  put 
full  faith  in  the  account  which  he  had  so  implicitly 
accepted.  Mud  Spring  Station  had,  however,  been 
apparently  abandoned,  and  we  were  compelled  to  push 
on  to  Smoke  Creek  without  resting  there.  Next  day, 
we  rose  early,  and  made  the  best  speed  we  could,  in  the 
hope  of  reaching  Deep  Hole  on  the  same  night.  This 


1C8  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

* 

was,  however,  in  consequence  of  the  depth  of  the  snow 
in  many  places,  impossible.  We  were  forced  to  stop  at 
Wall  Springs.  This  was  at  six  miles'  distance  from  the 
point  to  which  our  steps  were  directed. 

When,  on  the  succeeding  day,  shortly  after  dawn,  we 
arrived  at  the  Station,  we  found  that  the  travellers  had 
told  Tom  nothing  but  the  truth. 

Nevertheless,  on  a  thorough  examination,  I  found 
that  none  of  the  provisions  or  blankets  had  been  taken. 
Nothmg  but  the  guns  and  ammunition  had  been  made 
away  with.  But  for  the  marks  of  blood  on  the  floor 
and  in  the  doorway,  it  is  more  than  probable  Bear's 
suspicions  might  have  been  equally  divided  between 
the  man  he  had  left  in  charge  of  the  Station  and  the 
red-skins. 

As  yet,  nothing  had  been  found  inside  the  premises 
to  indisputably  settle  the  fact  of  the  man's  murder,  or 
if  he  had  been  murdered,  to  prove  how  or  by  whom  the 
outrage  had  been  committed. 

The  snow  in  front  of  the  house  might  possibly  have 
offered  some  proof ;  but  the  feet  of  the  party  who  had 
brought  the  news  to  Honey  Lake,  had  effaced  all  such 
evidence,  which  might  have  been  left  on  it.  Some  days 
had,  to  a  certainty,  elapsed.  My  life  in  the  last  few 
years  had,  however,  taught  me  the  two  great  Indian 
virtues,  patience  and  persistence.  Only  half  of  our 
search  was  yet  over. 

I  began  to  examine  the  grounds*  round  the  Station, 
and  found,  leading  to  one  of  the  largest  and  deepest  of 
the  springs  from  which  it  lias  taken  its  name,  the  track 
of  moccasins. 

Getting  a  long  lariat*  which  lame  Tom  had  procured 
for  rne,  I  extemporized  a  hook  from  the  hoop  of  an  old 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  169 

keg,  and  with  the  line  to  which  I  had  attached  it,  began 
fishing  in  the  spring,  for  anything  I  might  find  in  it. 

Nor,  was  my  search  long  unrewarded. 

Shortly  after,  in  dragging  the  bottom,  my  hook 
caught  hold  of  something  heavy.  When  we  had  raised 
it  to  the  surface  of  the  water,  it  proved  to  be  a  body. 
As  I  glanced  at  Bear,  he  said,  with  almost  a  groan  : 

u  Sure  enough,  it's  poor  Dave." 

The  head  of  the  murdered  man  had  been  split  with  a 
hatchet,  and  afterwards  scalped.  A  fragment  of  rock 
had  been  tied  to  the  body  by  the  Pah-utes  for  the  pur 
pose  of  sinking  it. 

After  we  had  interred  it,  as  decently  as  we  could,  we 
proceeded  to  cache  the  blankets,  provisions,  and  any 
thing  else  which  might  be  of  value.  All  of  the  stock 
had  been  driven  off,  with  the  exception  of  a  lame  horse. 
This  we  took  away  with  us,  as,  otherwise,  it  must  have 
perished. 

On  our  return,  when  we  had  reached  the  low  Sand 
Hills  at  the  foot  of  Smoke-creek  Canon,  we  saw  eight 
or  ten  red-skins  coming  down  the  side  of  the  mountain 
to  the  right  of  the  track  in  front  of  us.  Each  of  them 
carried  a  stick  with  a  piece  of  white  rag  tied  to  it.  In 
the  hands  of  an  Indian,  a  flag  of  any  sort  means  fight, 
and  we  knew  it.  Our  preparations  were  speedily  made. 
Telling  the  boy  to  lead  the  horse  and  draw  his  revolver, 
I  gave  his  rifle  to  Tom  Bear,  who  had  none,  bidding  him 
cover  our  rear.  Then,  before  taking  my  place  in  front, 
an  uncommon  one  for  most  generals,  and  only  to  be 
pardoned  on  account  of  the  exceedingly  restricted  num 
ber  of  my  army,  I  gave  my  directions  to  the  boy.  They 
were  very  simple.  lie  was  to  follow  after  me,  and  not 
use  his  Colt,  unless  I  fired — if  necessitated  to  do  so. 
8 


170  .         BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

When  all  was  settled  satisfactorily,  we  steadily  ad 
vanced. 

Soon  after,  the  Washos  reached  the  road.  So,  at 
least,  my  lame  friend  afterwards  said  they  were,  and  it 
appears  probable,  as  ten  Pah-ntes  to  two  whites  and  a 
boy,  even  if  a  tall  one,  would  scarcely  have  been  cowed 
so  easily.  They  had  drawn  up  on  either  side  of  the 
track,  and  attempted  to  induce  us  to  stop.  Pushing 
them  right  and  left  with  my  rifle,  I  paid  no  attention  to 
this,  and  as  soon  as  we  had  passed,  faced  round,  bidding 

Tom  to  do  the  same,  until  we  were  out  of  the  ran^e  of 

7  & 

their  arrows.     None  of  them  had  fire-arms. 

On  reaching  the  canon,  instead  of  going  through  it, 
we  crossed  to  the  west  side,  in  the  view  of  preventing 
any  risk  of  an  ambush  from  them  while  we  were  in  the 
defile.  Had  we  exposed  ourselves  to  this  chance,  and 
had  they  enough  resolution  to  have  availed  themselves 
of  it,  their  arrows  would  have  told,  while,  unless  they 
had  incautiously  uncovered  themselves,  there  would 
have  been  exceedingly  small  risk  of  their  losing  any  of 
their  own  party.  Tom  Bear  was  right.  They  very 
certainly  could  not  have  been  Pah-utes. 

We  had  no  more  trouble  until  we  reached  Laithrop's 
Ranch,  which  we  did  in  as  short  a  period  as  lame  Tom 
and  the  still  lamer  quadruped  could  traverse  the  dis 
tance.  Here,  the  lad  who  had  accompanied  us  was  to 
remain  ;  and  when  I  left  him  there,  I  was  unable  to  re 
frain  from  giving  him  a  few  words  of  warm  praise. 

"  You  behaved  very  well,  my  boy,  when  yon  gave  up 
your  rifle,  at  once.  If  you  obey  orders  so  promptly  now, 
some  day  you  will  be  in  a  position  to  give  them." 

"  I'm  right  glad,  Captain  Mose,  to  hear  you  tell  me 
that." 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.         .  171 

As  he  said  this,  the  young  fellow  flushed  through  his 
richly  bronzed  skin  up  to  the  very  roots  of  his  hair,  with 
pleasure. 

When  I  saw  him,  a  somewhat  sad  and  bitter  reflection 
came  over  me.  In  the  far  West,  self-reliance  comes 
early  as  well  as  quickly.  Manhood  grows  with  action, 
not  by  years.  How  soon,  life  must  rob  him  of  the  ca 
pacity  of  blushing  at  any  such  recognition  of  obedience. 

There,  amid  the  roughly  hardy  dwellers  on  the  fron 
tier,  exertion  rapidly  blots  out  the  modest  valuation  of 
our  own  merits.  It,  indeed,  teaches  a  self-appreciation 
which  frequently  approaches  the  style  of  Bombastes,  and 
which  I  have  not  uncommonly  heard  stigmatized  as 
braggadocio. 

This  is,  nevertheless,  an  unfair  judgment.  He  who 
has  to  be  ready  for  anything,  whose  energy  and  audacity 
have  drawn  him  through  difficulties  and  dangers  his 
Eastern  fellow-countryman  never  has  been  exposed  to, 
will  at  times  necessarily  glorify  his  own  pluck  and  en 
durance.  And  why  should  he  not  do  so,  having  none 
around  him  who  would  be  inclined  to  sing  his  praises, 
while  they  believe  themselves  equally  or  more  gallant 
and  plucky  than  he  is  ? 


CHAPTER  XII. 

DANGER  IN  THE  Am — THE  CHOICE  OF  A  CAPTAIN — AN  EFFECT 
UAL  SARCASM — GOING  LAME — "THE  HEATHEN  CHINEE" — 
A  MILITARY  ENGINEER  WITHOUT  A  COMMISSION — No  VENTI 
LATION — SMOTHERING  LIKE  BATS  IN  A  HOLE — THE  MOMEN 
TARY  SURPRISE— Two  BED- SKINS— LEAVING  THEIR  GUNS 
OUTSIDE — TRAPPED — "THE  HEATHEN  CHINEE"  ONCE  MORE 
— SOME  QUIET  TALK 

THE  next  two  or  three  weeks  passed,  to  all  appearance, 
quietly  enough.  There  was,  however,  an  unpleasant 
feeling  in  Susan ville  and  around  Honey  Lake,  of  danger 
in  the  air.  Perhaps,  this  feeling  was  not  wholly  un 
pleasant.  The  Rangers  had  now  been  idle  for  a  toler 
ably  long  time.  That  is  to  say,  there  had  recently  been 
no  positive  Indian  troubles. 

However,  the  Deep  Hole  Spring  murder  had  sounded 
the  preparatory  note. 

Not  long  afterwards  the  gathering  storm  broke  on  us. 
A  large  stock  of  cattle  belonging  to  Bill  Long  and  Al 
len  Wood  had  been  in  the  charge  of  five  good  and 
trusty  Buccahros  or  herdsmen,  at  the  upper  end  of  the 
valley.  But  red  cunning,  in  this  case,  baffled  white 
honesty.  One  dark  night,  three  hundred  head  of  stock 
were  driven  off;  and  in  the  morning  the  herdsmen 
found  themselves  without  any  herd  to  look  after.  At 
the  time  when  the  intelligence  reached  it,  I  was  in 
Susan  ville.  In  less  than  an  hour  after  we  heard  the 
facts,  the  Rangers,  with  the  exception  of  three,  were  in 
the  saddle,  and  on  their  way  to  Emmerson's  Ranch,  from 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  173 

which  the  cattle  had  been  driven.  Two  of  the  three  we 
picked  up  on  the  road  there.  The  third  overtook  us, 
long  before  we  had  arrived  at  the  spot  where  our  ser 
vices  were  required. 

About  fifty  volunteers  had  collected  at  the  Ranch, 
when  we  reached  it.  They  were  occupied  in  the  mo 
mentous  duty  of  choosing  a  captain,  and  appeared  to 
find  no  small  difficulty  in  making  their  selection.  As 
soon  as  Harry  Arnold  appreciated  this  difficulty,  he  ap 
proached  me  with  an  air  of  very  far  profounder  respect 
than  he  had  ever  before  exhibited  to  me,  and  raising  his 
hand  to  his  forehead  in  soldier-like  style,  said  with  great 
gravity : 

"  Captain !  Don't  you  think  we  had  better  take  the 
trail  ?  They  won't  have  chosen  their  commanding  officer 
until—" 

"  The  Day  hof  Judgment ! "  broke  in  Brighton  Bill, 
with  an  oath. 

"And  after  that,"  continued  Harry  with  the  same  im 
perturbable  seriousness,  "  they  will  have  to  elect  a  Lieu 
tenant,  a  Sergeant,  and — " 

"  'Alf  ha  dozen  Ilorderlies! " 

For  once  in  my  life  I  very  nearly  forgot  duty,  as  I 
looked  at  the  two  whose  criticism  on  the  election  going 
on,  was  couched  in  styles  so  widely  opposed.  To  avoid 
roaring  with  laughter,  I  roared  out  in  a  very  different 
tone. 

"  Rangers !  take  the  trail." 

In  another  instant,  we  were  following  its  sufficiently 
oroad  and  plain  indication. 

Let  me,  as  we  pursue  it,  mention  that  Harry  Arnold's 
gentlemanly  reproof,  and  Bill's  coarser  satire  produced 
an  immediate  result.  David  Blan chard  was  chosen 


174  BUCKSKIN   M08E. 

captain  of  the  Volunteers,  in  less  than  five  minutes,  and 
in  no  more  than  ten  after  we  were  on  the  trail,  they 
also  were  in  the  saddles,  and  following  it,  closely  behind 
us. 

Blanchard  had  lived  on  the  Plains  for  years,  and  was 
in  every  respect  well  adapted  for  his  present  position. 
We  soon  had  a  good  understanding,  and  when  we  arrived 
at  Smoke  Creek  where  the  Indians  had  evidently 
camped  for  the  night,  on  the  day  before,  a  plan  of  ac 
tion  was  agreed  upon. 

The  horses  were  accordingly  sent  back  under  a  suffi 
cient  guard  to  the  Ranch,  and  we  divided  ourselves 
into  two  parties.  One  of  these  was  to  follow  the  red 
robbers  up  Painter's  Cafion,  which  direction  they  had 
taken.  The  other  was  to  continue  down  Smoke  Creek, 
by  Buffalo  Springs,  to  protect  the  settlers  from  any  other 
bands  of  the  Pah-utes  which  might  be  out,  after  any 
thing  they  could  pick  up — provision  or  stock,  weapons 
or  lives. 

Very  unfortunately,  shortly  after  we  had  started, 
John  Partridge  and  myself,  with  one  of  the  pack- 
horses  retained  to  carry  blankets  and  provisions,  as  well 
as  a  Chinese  who  had  accompanied  the  volunteers  as  a 
man  of  all  work,  became  so  lame  that  it  was  impossible 
for  us  to  continue  at  the  same  speed  as  the  rest  of  the 
party. 

It  was  a  matter  of  obvious  necessity,  that  \ve  should 
give  up  all  idea  of  doing  so. 

In  consequence  of  this,  Arnold  took  my  place  in 
command  of  the  Rangers,  and  with  a  sore  heart  in  one 
bosom  at  least,  I  turned  my  back  upon  the  men  whose 
labors  and  dangers  I  had  so  long  partaken.  It  would 
be  almost  impossible  for  me  to  explain  precisely  what 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  175 

my  feelings  were  at  that  moment.  Of  course,  I  felt 
none  who  had  shared  my  previous  struggles  would  im 
pute  my  disability  to  anything  approaching  fear,  or  a 
disinclination  to  endure  privation.  And  yet,  in  the 
immediate  pursuit  of  the  rascals  who  had  plundered 
two  of  our  prominent  settlers,  I  was  compelled  to  leave 
it  entirely  to  others.  In  my  eyes,  this  almost  seemed  a 
humiliation  which  it  must  be  long  before  I  could  sur 
mount,  and  which  subsequent  toil  and  courage  might 
alone  wipe  out. 

Necessarily,  this  now  appears  childish  to  myself  as  it 
will  doubtless  to  my  readers.  However,  I  felt  it,  and 
my  heart  seemed  to  weep  tears  of  blood  and  shame  as  I 
did  so. 

We  had  determined  upon  returning  through  Rush 
Valley,  for  two  reasons.  One  of  them  was,  that  know 
ing  the  ground,  we  fancied  it  would  be  easier  to  travel 
for  us  in  our  partially  disabled  condition.  The  other 
was  even  a  simpler  one.  On  reaching  Mud  Springs, 
which  even  in  our  present  state  we  might  fairly  count 
upon  doing  by  nightfall,  we  should  find  a  resting  place. 
This  was  in  the  house  of  a  man  whom  I  knew  tolerably 
well,  and  who  had  formerly  kept  the  Station  at  this 
place. 

Upon  reaching  Mud  Springs,  which  we  did  earlier 
than  we  had  calculated  on  doing,  we  repaired  to  his 
dwelling,  where  we  were  welcomed  warmly. 

Scarcely,  however,  had  he  placed  food  before  us,  with 
some  capital  coffee,  than  he  began  questioning  us  about 
the  Indians.  He  asked  us  what  we  had  heard  of  them — 
whether  they  were  yet  moving — what  action  had  been 
taken  with  regard  to  them,  and  lastly,  how  it  was  that  J, 
Buckskin  Mose,  as  I  was  now  generally  called,  chanced  to 


176  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

be  here?  In  reply,  I  recounted  to  him  the  plunder  of 
Emmerson's  Ranch,  of  which,  he  had  as  jet  heard 
nothing,  and  the  steps  which  had  been  taken  to  pursue 
the  Pah-ute  thieves.  My  narration  was  concluded 
with,  I  fear,  no  peculiarly  pious  expression  of  pleasure 
at  having  been  compelled  to  leave  the  Hangers  at  a 
time  when  I  should  so  desire  to  have  been  at  their  head. 

As  he  listened  to  what  I  was  saying,  he  chuckled 
audibly,  and  seeing  my  look  of  astonishment,  afterwards 
explained  what  had  induced  him  to  indulge  in  so 
strange  an  exhibition  of  merriment. 

"  Yer  see,  Cap !  I'm  ready  for  'em  if  they  look  me 
up.  I  don't  choose  to  turn  tail,  like  some  of  my  neigh 
bors." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  I  was  sartain  the  copper-colored  devils  were  pre 
paring  for  something  o'  the  sort,  and  so  made  a  hole 
under  the  chapparal  behind  the  house,  whar  I  don't 
much  think  they'll  spot  me,  when 'I  take  to  it." 

The  hole  he  alluded  to  was  a  large  and  comfortable 
excavation  conducted  to  by  a  subterranean  passage  of 
considerable  length.  It  had  taken  him  several  weeks 
to  dig  out  the  passage  and  room,  which  last  was  suffi 
ciently  spacious  to  cache  all  his  goods,  and  even  portion 
of  his  stock,  if  the  necessity  of  doing  so  was  forced 
upon  him.  He  exhibited  his  fortification,  or  we  should 
perhaps  call  it  his  citadel,  to  myself,  Partridge,  and  the 
Chinaman,  with  a  good  deal  of  pride. 

Nor,  indeed,  was  it  a  place  of  security  to  be  laughed 
at,  by  a  solitary  dweller  on  the  frontier  during  Indian 
troubles.  Nature  had  evidently  not  dealt  on  the  square 
with  him.  With  the  advantages  of  education,  the  fellow 
would  have  made  a  good  military  engineer. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  177 

t 

Fatigued  with  our  day's  tramp,  we  retired  at  an  early 
hour,  and  had  been  asleep  but  a  short  time,  when  we 
were  aroused  by  the. continual  barking  of  his  two  watch 
dogs.  These,  I  had  noticed  on  arriving  at  the  house. 
They  were  noble-looking  animals. 

Throwing  aside  my  blanket,  and  sitting  up,  I  noticed 
that  Partridge  had  done  the  same. 

As  for  the  person  who  had  failed  to  find  his  natural 
avocation,  he  was  already  on  his  feet,  as  also  was  our 
Chinese  friend.  The  latter  volunteered  a  very  un 
necessary  explanation. 

"  Doggee  too  much  barkee.  Pig-tail  Bobbee,  no 
sleepee." 

The  dogs  certainly  did  keep  up  a  confounded  row. 
We  concluded  that,  under  the  circumstances,  a  renewed 
attempt  at  slumber  would  be  useless.  In  accordance 
with  this  view  of  the  situation,  John  Partridge,  and  my 
self  also  rose,  "  keeping  an  eye  out "  for  what  might 
turn  up  next. 

We  had  only  been  on  our  legs  for  a  few  minutes, 
when  one  of  the  dogs  rushed  against  the  door  with  a 
prolonged  howl.  On  opening  it,  he  ran  in,  and  we  saw 
an  arrow  sticking  in  his  body.  The  door  was  instantly 
closed  and  barred.  It  was  clear  that  we  were  attacked, 
and  I  instantly  peered  through  one  of  the  small  holes 
with  which  the  boarded  and  sodded  walls  of  the  house 
were  pierced,  to  see  what  I  could. 

It  was  dark  enough.  Yet  my  eyes  were  sufficiently 
keen  to  discern  the  dusky  forms  of  objects  moving  in 
front,  which  were  evidently  red-skins. 

But  the  gloom  was  too  great  for  us  to  fire  with  a 
reasonable  chance  of  hitting  them.  We  must  wait  for 
the  daylight.  It  was  now  some  two  hours  past  mid- 
8* 


178  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

night,  and  when  the  dawn  broke  we  should — ha !  what 
was  this?  Smoke  driving  through  the  dried  sods  on  the 
inside  of  the  walls,  followed  here  and  there,  where  the 
shrinking  of  the  matted  earth  had  given  such  a  chance, 
by  lancing  tongues  of  flame. 

Light  had  been  afforded  us  much  sooner  than  we 
had,  in  any  way,  anticipated. 

The  red  devils  had  set  the  house  on  fire. 

It  was  clear  that  we  should  have  to  abandon  our 
outer  works,  and  retire  into  the  stronghold. 

We  accordingly  made  an  orderly  retreat  through  the 
tunnel  which  has  already  been  mentioned,  carrying  all 
our  ammunition  and  weapons  with  us.  The  Pah-utes 
had  of  course  expected  us  to  attempt  an  escape  above 
ground.  In  that  case,  they  would  have  been  able,  by 
the  light  of  the  blazing  dwelling,  to  have  counted  us  out 
and  raised  our  hair.  As  it  was,  we  preferred  concealing 
ourselves  under  the  earth.  This  enabled  us  to  save  our 
scalps,  at  any  rate,  for  the  time. 

We  had  carried  a  spade  with  us.  It  was  necessary  to 
fill  up  the  passage  through  which  we  quitted  the  burn 
ing  dwelling.  In  any  less  pressing  necessity  than  the 
present,  I  should  certainly  have  set  Pig-tail  Bobbee  at 
the  work  of  closing  it.  Chinese  labor,  however,  although 
thorough,  is  by  no  means  rapid  enough  in  moments  of 
necessity. 

So,  I  began  it.  Partridge  and  the  engineer  followed. 
Each  worked  in  turn,  almost  as  fast  as  chain  light 
ning. 

In  some  ten  or  twelve  minutes  the  mouth  of  the  nar 
row  tunnel  was  blocked  up,  I  may  honestly  say,  with  a 
speed  and  completeness  which  even  a  Brunei  or  a 
Stephenson  would  have  appreciated.  McClellan  would 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  179 

have  been  nowhere,  if  his  work  had  been  brought  into 
comparison  with  ours  on  the  score  of  rapidity. 

We  then  transferred  ourselves  to  the  citadel.  As  I 
before  intimated,  it  was  sufficiently  large.  However, 
it  possessed  one  inconvenience  with  regard  to  John  and 
myself. 

The  engineer  was  a  short  man.  He  had  dug  it  out, 
with  an  eye  to  his  own  convenience.  The  Chinaman 
was  even  shorter.  Consequently,  he  also  found  it  lofty 
enough  for  his  height.  But  we  counted  nearly  six 
feet  in  stature.  However,  in  such  a  case  as  the  present 
one,  minor  personal  discomforts  had  to  be  overlooked. 
A  graver  one  now  presented  itself.  The  engineer  had 
provided  no  means  of  ventilation.  We  had  tenanted 
the  internal  fort  for  some  half  an  hour,  when  the  atmos 
phere  became  unpleasantly  close.  It  might  even  have 
been  pronounced  stifling.  Some  means  of  procuring 
fresh  air  had  at  once  to  be  found.  I  questioned  our 
friend  as  to  the  presumable  distance  between  the  top  of 
my  skull  and  the  bottom  of  the  cha/pparal. 

"  Tain't  far,  Cap,  atween  one  and  the  other,"  was  his 
answer. 

"How  far?" 

"  Mebbee,  six  inches,"  he  reflectively  answered. 

"  You're  sure  of  that?" 

"  Or  mebbee,  six  foot ! " 

"Good  Heavens!  man,  have  you  no  clearer  idea 
about  it  than  that  3  " 

"  How  on  airth  should  1,  Cap  ? " 

"  Don't  you  know  that  there's  a  good  chance  of  our 
being  smothered,  like  rats  in  a  hole  which  has  been 
stopped  up  ? " 

"  Yow  could  I  help  it  ? " 


180  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

There  was  no  use  in  discussing  the  subject  with  the 
luckless  engineer.  That  was  evident.  Something, 
however,  had  to  be  done,  and  very  shortly.  A  rat  in 
such  a  case  would  use  its  teeth  without  pausing  to  dis 
cuss  how  much  or  how  little  he  had  to  gnaw  through. 
My  teeth  were  not  exactly  adapted  to  such  an  experi 
ment.  But  my  ramrod  might  be  a  good  probe,  and  if 
it  found  bottom  or  top  (which  it  was,  it  would  have  been 
difficult  to  say)  the  spade  might  save  us. 

In  another  instant  I  was  working  my  ramrod  through 
the  earthen  roof  of  our  air-tight,  although  scarcely 
pregnable  citadel. 

The  earth  was  soft,  and  in  less  than  a  minute  I  felt 
its  end  had  reached  fresh  air,  although  none  of  that 
desirable  commodity  had  yet  reached  us.  In  order  to 
enlarge  the  hole  I  had  made,  I  was  working  the  slip  of 
wrought-iron  with  which  I  had  produced  it,  round  and 
round,  when  a  large  piece  of  rock  fell  down  from  the 
side  of  it,  with  a  quantity  of  loose  soil. 

It  scraped  my  shoulder. 

"  What  tumblee  ?  "  screamed  Pig-tail  Bobby. 

"  Hold  your  tongue,  you  fool ! "  said  Partridge. 
"  Don't  you  feel,  Mose  has  saved  us  from  stifling." 

With  the  fresh  air,  a  little  light,  it  was  very  little, 
came  through  the  hole  to  us.  As  for  me,  I  felt  a  new 
man.  Looking  around  for  a  barrel  which  I  had  seen  in 
the  excavation  when  we  had  first  visited  it,  with  its 
proprietor,  I  set  it  erect  under  the  ventilator  so  unexpect 
edly  manufactured.  Mounting  on  it,  I  protruded  my 
head  through  the  bottom  of  the  chapparal.  Day  had 
already  broken.  Through  the  under  branches  of  the 
trees  I  could  see  the  still  smoking  timbers  of  the  burned- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  181 

down    house.      The    rascally   Pah-utes    were    dancing 
around  them,  in  fiendish  glee. 

It  was  too  great  a  temptation  to  be  resisted,  and  I 
asked  John  to  hand  me  my  rifle. 

After  he  had  handed  it  to  me,  I  passed  its  barrel 
through  the  bushes  with  great  care,  so  as  to  avoid  any 
noise  which  might, attract  the  attention  of  the  Indians. 

Never,  possibly,  was  any  red  devil  more  surprised 
than  that  Pah-ute,  when  he  felt  the  leaden  messenger  of 
death  crashing  through  his  skull. 

His    surprise,   however,   was    but  momentary.      It 
silenced  him  forever. 

They  handed  me  another  rifle,  and  another  of  the 
red -skins  fell. 

Yet  another,  and  another — until,  at  last,  when  nine  of 
the  Indians  had  been  slain,  the  remainder  of  them  fled 
from  the  scene  they  had  so  recently  fancied  one  of  com 
plete  victory. 

We  now  quitted  the  cave  which  had  served  us  so 
well,  having  taken  some  pork  from  the  barrel  I  had 
used  to  stand  upon  with  so  much  advantage.  While 
cooking  this  on  the  still  burning  embers  of  the  house,  I 
saw  the  charred  carcase  of  the  poor  hound,  who  had 
given  us  so  timely  a  warning.  He  had  been  forgotten 
by  his  master,  when  we  took  refuge  in  the  citadel,  con 
structed  by  him  without  the  indispensable  requisite  of 
an  air-hole. 

As  we  were  drinking  a  little  sugarless  and  milkless 
coffee,  chancing  to  turn  my  head,  I  saw  something  mov 
ing  in  a  large  sage-brush. 

Leaping  to  my  feet,  I  started  for  it,  and  as  I  did  so 
an  Indian  broke  from  it  and  ran.  He  did  this  in  a  zig 
zag  manner,  leaping  from  side  to  side,  which  rendered 


182  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

it  a  matter  of  extreme  difficulty  to  fetch  him.  At 
length,  however,  I  was  enabled  to  accomplish  this,  lie 
must  have  been  on  a  scouting  expedition  from  the  party 
we  had  so  narrowly  escaped.  If  so,  he  had  not  well 
calculated  the  time  of  his  return.  Half  an  hour  later 
or  earlier,  he  might  have  kept  his  scalp. 

Although  still  lame,  I  was  enabled  to  cover  more 
ground  on  our  way  back  to  the  Ranch  of  George  Lai- 
throp,  which  we  arrived  at,  close  upon  four  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon. 

A  little  after  we  had  entered  it,  and  while  we  were 
eating  our  supper,  Laithrop,  who  had  been  out  when  we 
got  there,  turned  up.  He  was  astonished  to  see  me, 
supposing  I  had  been  witli  the  Rangers;  but  he  had  lit 
tle  time  to  devote  to  the  expression  of  any  such  feeling. 
Two  mounted  Pah-utes  were  advancing  to  the  house. 
Three  months  since  they  would  have  been  received  as 
friends,  so  far  at  least  as  a  red-skin  can  ever  be  deemed 
friendly  by  the  white  man,  of  whom,  on  the  slightest 
chance  or  whim,  he  is  ready  to  become  the  enemy. 
After  the  preceding  few  days,  they  could  merely  be  re 
garded  in  the  light  of  the  latter  designation. 

"  Let  them  enter,  Laithrop !  but  without  their  guns. 
We  will  go  into  the  back-room." 

In  two  or  three  minutes  the  red-skins  were  at  the 
door.  He  told  them,  they  must  "  leave  "  their  "  guns  out 
side."  They  were  probably  upon  an  expedition  for  spy 
ing  out  the  nakedness  of  the  land,  and  counted  on  doing 
no  immediate  harm,  as  they  consented  to  do  this. 
Leaning  one  gun  on  either  side  of  the  door,  they  accord 
ingly  entered  the  main-room  of  the  Ranch.  Partridge 
and  myself  quitted  the  house  by  the  rear  doorway,  and 
passing  round  it  on  either  side,  secured  their  two 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  183 

weapons.  Having  effected  this,  I  entered  the  room,  fol 
lowed  by  my  companion,  and  told  them  they  were  "our 
prisoners."  An  indescribable  mixture  of  rage  and  fear 
Hashed  over  the  features  of  the  taller  red-skin. 

"  The  Pah-ute  know  Buckskin  Mose.  lie  laugh  at 
his  words,  a  heap." 

While  saying  this,  he  had  leapt  into  a  corner  of  the 
room,  caught  up  an  old  repeating  rifle  which  was  stand 
ing  there,  and  struck  heavily  with  it  at  George  Laithrop. 
Had  Laithrop  not  dodged  the  blow,  it  would  have 
severely  injured  him.  As  it  w^as,  it  caught  him  slant 
wise  on  the  back  and  sent  him  staggering  across  the 
room. 

The  next  instant  he  was  struggling  with  myself  and 
Partridge. 

He  managed  to  draw  his  knife. 

O 

However,  this  had  been  seen  by  me  in  time  to  avoid 
the  thrust.  With  a  blow  from  my  fist,  I  dashed  him  from 
me.  At  the  same  instant  a  shot  from  his  own  Minie 
rifle,  which  Laithrop  had  caught  up  from  the  place  where 
I  had  laid  it,  passed  through  his  breast,  and  he  fell. 

Then  I  looked  round  for  his  companion. 

To  my  surprise,  I  found  him  on  the  bed  in  the  grip  of 
Pig-tail  Bobby.  Never  before  had  1  seen  a  Chinaman 
with  any  fight  in  him.  It  was  my  first  experience  of  a 
new  phase  in  the  character  of  the  "  Heathen  Chinee." 
Bobby's  knife  was  out,  and  in  another  minute  the  Pah- 
ute's  life-blood  would  have  been  staining  the  blankets. 
This  was  a  most  useless  proceeding,  as  blankets,  at  this 
time,  were  not  over-plentiful  round  Honey  Lake.  There 
fore  1  pulled  Pig-tail  back,  with  a  round  exclamation  of 
disgust  at  the  lavish  profligacy  of  such  a  proceeding. 

The  red-skin,  however,  had  more  teg  and  less  pluck 


184  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

than  his  companion.  Leaping  from  the  bed,  he  darted 
through  the  door,  and  was  off. 

However,  I  was  as  quick  as  he  was.  No  sooner  had 
I  seen  him  make  for  the  open,  than  I  was  after  him. 
As  I  left  the  house  I  had  caught  up  a  double-barrelled 
shot-gun,  and  brought  him  down  before  he  had  run  fifty 
yards  from  it. 

After  burying  the  Indians,  Partridge  started  with  me 
for  Susan ville,  taking  their  ponies  with  us. 

A  few  days  only  had  passed  when  Harry  Arnold  also 
returned  with  the  rest  of  the  Rangers.  They  had  re 
captured  only  a  few  head  of  cattle.  The  rest  of  the 
herd  had  been  killed  by  the  thieving  red-skins,  in  the 
same  cowardly  manner  which  I  have  elsewhere  detailed. 

One  might  have  fancied  the  lesson  they  had  received 
at  Mud  Springs,  and  the  close  pursuit  which  had  induced 
their  main  body  to  resort  to  this  expedient,  would  have 
kept  them  quiet.  It,  however,  did  not.  The  periodical 
lust  for  robbery  and  bloodshed  which  seems,  from  time 
to  time,  to  possess  them,  had  mastered  their  nature. 
More  complete  punishment  could  alone  stop  it. 

A  week  later,  George  Laithrop  sent  me  a  pressing  de 
mand  to  come  down  with  a  few  of  the  boys  and  pass 
some  time  with  him.  Two  Pah-utes  had  recently  ap 
peared  at  the  Ranch,  and  told  him  they  had  seen  Buck 
skin  Mose  and  himself  kill  their  two  companions  and 
bury  them.  They  had  then  threatened  him  with  prompt 
vengeance,  openly  telling  him  that  they  intended  not 
only  to  kill  him  and  burn  his  house  in  a  few  days,  but 
to  slaughter  every  white  man  in  the  valley. 

It  must  be  owned  that  the  open  hardihood  of  these 
threats  looked  ominous.  The  red-skin  so  seldom  threat 
ens  before  he  strikes,  that  it  seemed  to  me  the  dwellers 


BUCKSKIN  MOSE.  185 

about  the  Lake  might  be  exposed  to  a  graver  danger 
from  the  Indians,  than  any  they  had  as  yet  incurred. 

In  consequence  of  this  belief,  my  men  were  at  once 
summoned.  The  same  day  we  started  for  George's 
Ranch,  and  got  there  after  nightfall.  On  consulting 
with  Laithrop,  it  was  considered  advisable  to  keep  the 
Rangers  as  much  out  of  sight  as  possible,  to  prevent  the 
red-skins  from  realizing  how  well  he  was  protected. 
In  compliance  with  this  idea,  only  some  half-dozen  of 
the  boys,  amongst  whom  was  Tom  Harvey  and  myself, 
became  occupants  of  the  house.  Half  of  the  remainder 
were  stationed  in  a  large  log  corral  about  one  hundred 
yards  distant  on  the  south  side.  The  rest  were  secreted 
in  an  old  root-shed,  or  rather  in  the  cellar  of  one,  to  the 
west. 

George  and  myself  sat  by  the  burning  logs  on  his 
hearth,  talking  on  until  a  late  hour. 

Our  subject  was  the  red  man,  and  he  bitterly  de 
nounced  the  way  in  which  our  Government  dealt  with 
such  a  grave  subject.  It  was,  he  said,  continually  pat 
ting  them  on  the  back,  and  buying  a  temporary  truce. 
This,  he  believed,  made  the  Indians  actually  think  that 
a  power  which  had  only  to  plant  its  heel  firmly  upon  them 
and  crush  them  out  of  existence,  actually  feared  their 
strength.  "Greater  liars,  more  unblushing  thieves,  as 
well  as  more  reckless  murderers,"  he  continued,  never  ex 
isted.  And  these  were  the  men  whom  Uncle  Sam  pro 
tected  against  his  own  children,  whenever  the  blue-coats 
appeared  upon  the  frontier. 

Nor  can  I  affirm  but  that  he  is,  in  the  main,  right. 
It  is  only  by  terrible  punishment  for  their  crimes,  the 
whites  are  able  to  keep  the  red-skins  within  anything 
like  reasonable  bounds. 


186  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

My  knowledge  of  them,  up  to  tins  time,  vouched  for 
the  necessity  of  such  retaliation.  In  no  case  which  I 
have  yet  recounted  had  the  settlers  commenced  an  In 
dian  war,  if  these  struggles  are  entitled  to  such  a  name. 
When  we  struck,  the  blow  was  called  for,  by  gross 
outrage  or  bloodier  murder.  Since  I  had  met  and 
known  them,  I  had  encountered  no  red-skin  who  had 
dealt  squarely  with  me,  except  the  father  of  Clo-ke-ta 
and  Old  Spotted  Tail.  And,  possibly,  of  all  the  tribes 
I  had  yet  any  acquaintance  with,  the  Pah-utes  possessed 
the  fewest  virtues  and  the  most  thorough  vices.  George 
Laithrop's  opinion  of  the  Indian,  founded  in  a  great 
measure  upon  their  character,  was,  in  a  fuller  or  lesser 
degree,  shared  by  all  who  had  ever  been  brought  in 
contact  with  them. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

A  LITTLE  COMPASSION  —  WHITE  FOLLY  AND  RED  TREACHERY  — 
A  SQUEAK  FOR  LIFE  —  MAKING  TRACKS—  FEMALE  SOCIETY  — 
A  TASTE  OF  WESTERN  CIVILIZATION  —  DEFERRING  A  HONEY 
MOON  —  THE  ARMY  OFFICER  —  TRAILING  AND  SPOTTING  —  A 
CHANCE  TO  LOOK  AT  A  LITTLE  INDIAN  FIGHTING  —  WRATH 
FUL  AND  RIGHTEOUS  BUNCOMBE  —  FORCED  TO  BEND  ONE'S 
HEAD  —  MIRTH  EVEN  AT  THE  POINT  OF  DEATH. 


had  not  to  wait  long  for  the  red-skins  to  attempt 
carrying  out  their  late  threats.  On  this  occasion,  we 
also  had  a  good  example  afforded  us  of  their  gratitude, 
and  keen  sense  of  obligation  for  kindness. 

About  ten  o'clock  on  the  following  day,  I  discovered 
some  thirty  -five  or  forty  of  them  descending  the  side  of 
the  mountain  near  the  Ranch,  on  their  ponies.  Tom 
Harvey  was  at  the  moment  standing  by  me.  He  re 
cognized  an  Indian  at  their  head  whom  he  had  almost, 
as  he  himself  expressed  it,  raised.  He  had  lived  with 
Tom  for  several  years,  and  on  one  occasion,  had  saved 
Tom's  life.  Naturally  enough,  old  love  for  the  lad,  who 
was  now  barely  eighteen  years  of  age,  moved  Harvey's 
bowels  strongly  with  compassion. 

Being,  as  my  readers  already  know,  a  largely  fat  man, 
his  compassion  for  the  young  Pali-ute  was  as  oilily  large 
and  full-sized. 

To  state  matters  briefly,  he  wished  to  save  him,  and 
applied  to  me  for  permission  to  go  out  and  warn  him  to 
leave. 


188  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  If  I  grant  it,  you  must  keep  your  tongue  still,  upon 
our  being  here." 

"In  course  I  will,  Cap!" 

"  Not  one  word  must  you  utter  about  our  presence  at 
the  Ranch." 

"D'  yer  think  I'm  a  fool,  Cap?" 

Well !  It  can  be  no  use  to  induce  the  belief  that  I 
did  not  wish  him  to  go.  Perhaps,  at  the  time,  owing  to 
my  conversation  with  Laithrop  on  the  night  before,  I 
may  have  fancied  we  had  judged  the  red  rascals  too 
harshly.  Possibly — but  there  is  no  reason  for  my  hesi 
tation,  or  beating  the  cover.  I  may  as  well  have  it  out, 
at  once.  The  truth  is,  like  an  idiot,  I  permitted  him  to 
constitute  himself  good  adviser  to  the  one  red-skin  in 
particular,  and  necessarily  to  the  others  in  general. 

With  iny  full  sympathy  he  walked  towards  the  In 
dians,  and  motioned  to  him  he  had  recognized,  to  come 
forward.  The  young  Pah-ute  advanced. 

Tom  spoke  to  him,  and  the  red-skin  replied,  making  a 
gesture  of  dissent  as  he  did  so.  After  this  Harvey  coiit 
tinned  long  and  earnestly,  apparently  urging  him 
warmly  to  induce  his  colored  friends  to  desist  from 
their  hostile  intentions.  The  Indian,  with  an  emphatic 
movement  of  the  arm,  seemed  positively  to  refuse  at 
tempting  to  bring  them  to  any  such  concession.  It  was 
then  I  saw  the  Ranger  point  in  the  direction  of  the  cor 
ral  in  which  I  had  stationed  portion  of  my  men. 

Immediately  that  I  saw  this,  I  became  aware  of  the 
folly  I  had  been  guilty  of,  even  more  clearly  than  Har 
vey  himself,  soon  afterwards,  was  of  his 

The  young  red-skin  turned  at  once  to  his  compan 
ions,  pointing  to  the  corral,  and  uttering  a  few  rapid 
words.  Then  I  saw  Tom  Harvey  rushing  back  towards 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  189 

me,  while  the  Pah-utes  fired  a  volley  on  the  house  or 
shed  to  which  the  Ranger's  insane  frankness  had  directed 
them.  It  was  merely  made  of  boards,  an  inch  in  thick 
ness,  reared  end- ways.  Their  bullets  riddled  it,  with 
the  rattle  of  a  storm  of  hail.  All  we  could  do  in  return 
was  to  fire  on  them  from  the  corral  and  the  house,  as 
they  turned  tail  and  urged  their  ponies  up  the  mountain 
they  had  been  descending.  -We  saw  five  or  six  of  them 
reel  in  their  saddles.  But  they  were  prevented  from 
falling  from  them,  by  their  companions,  until  the  whole 
of  them  were  out  of  sight. 

One  of  our  own  men  had  been  instantly  killed  by 
their  volley. 

My  wish  was  to  follow  them  instantly.  But,  in  this 
instance,  my  orders  were  not  attended  to.  The  boys  had 
rushed  upon  Harvey  and  seized  him.  They  were  al 
ready  violently  discussing  the  question  whether  they 
should  shoot  or  hang  him  for  the  crime  he  had  commit 
ted.  It  was  fortunate  for  him  that  my  wrath,  as  well  as 
that  of  Arnold  and  Painter,  although  fierce  enough, 
was  scarcely  so  savage  as  theirs  was.  Brighton  Bill 
and  Butch',  I  knew,  would  stand  by  me  in  almost  any 
case,  whether  they  agreed  with  me  or  not.  If  matters 
came  to  the  worst,  I  also  felt  certain  that  we  might 
count  upon  the  assistance  of  George  Laithrop.  Rush 
ing  amongst  them,  it  was  with  no  small  violence,  and 
even  a  fierce  blow  or  two,  that  I  struggled  to  the  side  of 
the  pale  and  weaponless  Harvey,  and  wrenched  him 
from  their  hands. 

"  What  are  you  doing — Rangers  \ " 

"  A'  going  to  hang  him,  darned  quick." 

"  Without  even  a  trial  ? "  I  demanded. 

"  We'll  jist  try  him,  arter wards." 


190  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  Then,  by  God  !  "  I  said,  "  you  will  have  to  hang  me 
and  try  me  afterwards,  too."  As  they  paused  for  per 
haps  half  a  minute,  I  continued  without  giving  them  a 
chance  to  speak.  "  I  believed  you  chose  me  your  Cap 
tain,  yet  here  you  are  going  to  hang  one  of  my  boys, 
without  letting  me  say  a  single  word." 

"  Say  it  darned  sharp,  then,  Cap  !  " 

"  And  give  us  your  orders  to  run  him  up  with  a  rope, 
or  put  a  bullet  through  his  skull,  in  two  minutes," 
roared  out  another. 

As  they  were  again  crowding  up  and  one  of  them 
had  grasped  Harvey  by  the  collar,  Ben  Painter,  follow 
ed  by  Arnold,  had  struggled  to  my  side  and  thrust  him 
back. 

"  I  tell  yer,"  he  shouted  out,  for  otherwise  he  would 
scarcely  have  been  heard,  "  Mose  is  right.  He's  Cap 
tain.  We  mustn't  have  any  Vigilance  Committee  busi 
ness,  but  do  up  things  square." 

"  We'll  take  him  down  to  Susanville,  and  give  him  a 
fair  trial,"  added  Arnold. 

"  And  then  yer  can  hang  him,  if  yer  choose  to,"  ex 
claimed  Butch'.  "  Yer'll  only  have  tu  wait  twenty-four 
hours." 

By  this  time,  the  last  speaker  and  Brighton  Bill  had 
vigorously  thrust  their  way  to  my  side,  and  I  felt  I  had 
a  sufficient  support  to  carry  my  point  and  save  Harvey 
from  the  menacing  rope  and  tree  which  had  so  lately 
reared  themselves  before  him. 

But  he  also  seemed  to  feel  his  increased  chance  of 
safety,  and  anxious  to  improve  it,  attempted  to  com 
mence  defending  himself.  When,  however,  he  did  so, 
I  cut  him  short  with  a  fierce  whisper,  announcing  to  him 
that  if  he  uttered  "  a  single  word,"  I  would  abandon 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  191 

him.  The  Rangers  were  in  a  moment  of  such  wild  ex 
citement,  that,  had  lie  spoken,  every  effort  we  might 
have  made  would  have  been  useless.  Their  savage  fury 
would  very  speedily  have  settled  the  question,  in  spite  of 
us.  Even  as  it  was,  we  had  to  contend  with  them  for 
more  than  an  hour,  before  we  had  calmed  them  down 
sufficiently  to  listen  to  our  arguments. 

When  this  was  at  last  effected,  I  placed  him  in  the 
charge  of  Painter  and  Brighton  Bill,  while  we  buried  the 
man  who  had  been  slain  through  his  insane  want  of 
judgment. 

That  night  we  slept  in  George  Laithrop's  house,  and 
on  the  following  morning  we  were  no  sooner  stirring, 
than  it  was  discovered  that  while  we  had  been  sleeping, 
Tom  Harvey  had  been  awake.  In  other  words,  he  had 
made  tracks. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  there  was  scarcely  one 
of  our  party  who,  while  engaged  in  active  work,  looking 
after  the  Indians,  was  not  in  the  habit  of  keeping  one 
eye  at  least  half -open  in  the  hours  of  his  intermittent 
rest.  Possibly,  however,  it  was  the  belief  that  there  was 
no  actual  danger  immediately  around  us,  as  well  as  the 
security  Tom's  size  and  weight  appeared  to  afford 
against  any  attempt  on  his  part  to  escape,  that  prevented 
our  slumbers  from  being  broken.  At  all  events,  it  was 
difficult  for  us  to  realize  the  fact  that  he  had  managed 
it.  We  were  all  of  us  sleeping  upon  the  floor  of  the 
house.  Our  blankets  were  all  we  had.  Beds  were  then 
a  scarcity,  in  this  portion  of  the  West,  as,  indeed,  they 
would  be  now,  at  any  Ranch  in  a  section  of  it  not  too 
thickly  populated.  How  the  deuce  he  managed  to  step 
over  the  prostrate  forms  of  so  many  of  us  as  were  lying 
between  him  and  the  door,  without  disturbing  one  of 


192  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

the  sleepers,  it  would  be  impossible  to  say.  Had  he 
made  the  error  of  half  an  inch,  in  placing  one  of  his  feet 
upon  the  ground,  he  could  not  have  failed  to  waken  the 
Ranger  on  whose  body  or  limbs  he  must  have  trodden. 
Fear  had  evidently  much  lightened  his  person.  In  ad 
dition  to  this,  I  could  not  help  suspecting  that  George 
Laithrop  had  connived  at  his  escape.  Of  course,  there 
was  a  frightful  commotion  about  it  amongst  the  boys, 
whose  feelings  of  security  amongst  themselves  had  been 
so  unpleasantly  dispelled  by  his  conduct.  George,  how 
ever,  escaped  without  the  slightest  suspicion.  If  any 
one  was  imagined  to  have  aided  and  abetted  his  flight 
it  was  myself  and  Harry  Arnold.  In  fact,  as  we  were 
riding  back  to  Susan  ville,  Butch'  could  not  help  say 
ing  : 

"  I'm  -darned  if  yer  didn't  manage  the  thing  well, 
Mose." 

After  this,  none  of  us  again  alluded  to  it.  Life  was 
too  active  and  full  of  daily  excitement,  to  give  us  time 
for  recalling  such  an  event  after  it  had  reckoned  itself 
with  the  doings  of  the  past. 

Only  „  once  since  then,  did  I  hear  anything  of 
"  Fatty."  He  had  been  seen  by  a  trapper  on  the  Hum- 
boldt  River,  and  had  then  said  he  was  on  the  way  to 
Salt  Lake  City.  He  may  possibly  by  this  time  have 
become  a  Mormon,  and  been  enrolled  as  an  elder  of 
that  polygamous  community. 

Some  time  in  July,  1862,  I  received  a  letter  from  the 
last-named  place.  A  few  months  earlier  I  had  written 
to  iny  wife,  begging  her  to  come  to  me,  and  giving  her 
directions  how  to  cross  the  Plains.  This  letter  was  from 
her.  She  had  immediately  complied  with  my  wishes, 
and  requested  me  to  meet  her  as  soon  after  she  left 


BUCKSKIN   MOSK.  193 

Salt  Lake  as  might  be  possible.  It  would  be  impossi 
ble  to  express  the  delight  which  I  felt  in  knowing  she 
was  so  near  me.  None  of  those  who  have  not  experi 
enced  the  pleasures  of  a  life  with  little  female  society, 
and  no  near  female  relative  to  whom  they  can  unbosom 
all  their  joy  as  well  as  all  their  weariness,  discomfort, 
and  trouble,  can  realize  it.  In  the  excess  of  my  gratifi 
cation,  I  fear  I  must  have  exposed  myself  to  the  laugh 
ter  and  jocularity  as  well  as  the  envy  of  many  of  my 
comrades,  as  I  cannot  doubt  but  that,  in  my  first  mo 
ments  of  well-nigh  delirious  pleasure,  I  must  have  made 
a  complete  fool  of  myself. 

Almost  immediately,  I  left  Susanville  for  Virginia 
City,  Nevada.  Thence,  I  went  to  Dayton. 

Here  I  met  an  overland  stage-driver.  From  him  I 
heard  that  he  had  passed  a  train  at  Austin,  in  which  I 
might  find  my  wife.  Accordingly,  I  purchased  a  horse 
and  side-saddle  from  the  keeper  of  the  hotel,  who  was 
named  Jaquish,  and  on  the  succeeding  day  was  again 
in  the  saddle. 

Dan  Yanderhoof,  a  friend  of  mine  whom  I  had  known 
for  several  years,  accompanied  me  portion  of  the  way  to 
Carson  City.  I  went  to  this  place  with  the  view  of 
meeting  Colonel  P.  E.  Connor  with  his  command  of 
California  Volunteers.  My  friend  introduced  ine  to 
him  and  Major  Gallagher,  and  I  was  asked  to  accom 
pany  them  some  eight  miles  down  the  Carson  River  to 
Heed's  Station.  It  was  to  talk  upon  "  business."  Oth 
erwise,  I  should  have  certainly  declined  deviating  from 
the  road,  so  increasingly  anxious  was  I  to  see  the  little 
woman  from  whom  I  had  so  long  been  separated. 

This  business  was,  after  the  evening  meal,  speedily 
arranged. 


194:  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

They  needed  a  guide  and  scout  through  Idaho  and 
Utah,  in  the  Fall.  My  qualifications  as  the  last,  would 
counterbalance  any  deficiency  I  might  have  as  to  the 
first-named.  The  necessary  details  were  quickly  agreed 
upon,  and  early  on  the  next  morning  I  was  crossing 
the  Desert  towards  the  big  bend  of  the  Carson  River. 
On  the  day  following  this,  I  came  upon  a  large  train  of 
stock,  and  one  of  the  guides  told  me  a  larger  train  was 
then  some  four  miles  behind  them,  at  a  distance  of 
something  more  than  a  mile  from  the  main  track. 
Pushing  on  at  once,  in  less  than  half  an  hour  I  came 
in  sight  of  the  encampment. 

While  I  was  riding  up  to  it,  my  wife  recognized  me. 
How  she  was  able  to  do  so,  has,  on  thinking  the  matter 
over,  always  astonished  me.  The  tan  of  exposure  on 
the  frontier,  fuller  muscle,  and  the  general  style  of  my 
dress  and  equipment,  had  so  thoroughly  changed  my 
personal  appearance. 

However,  she  certainly  did  know  me.  As  for  her,  I 
should  have  recognized  her  features,  even  had  she  been 
dressed  in  the  unsightly  garb  of  an.  Esquimaux. 

It  would  be  little  use  for  me  to  detail  the  words  and 
actions  of  this  meeting.  Any  man  who  has  been  so  long 
separated  from  his  wife  as  I  had  been,  and  any  female 
who  had,  for  so  long  a  period,  not  seen  the  face  of  her 
husband,  will  readily  imagine  what  passed  between  us. 
We  were,  nevertheless,  quickly  compelled  to  bring  our 
outburst  of  natural  joy  to  an  end,  by  the  approach  of 
Chart  Gregory  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Devine,  and  others 
of  her  companions  on  the  train.  Then  I  heard  of  all 
the  trouble  she  had  been  exposed  to,  and  more  especially 
of  a  fellow  named  Mat  Carpenter,  who  had  been  con 
sistently  unkind  to  her  since  they  had  first  struck  the 


BUCKSKIN   HOSE.  195 

Plains.  He  had  been  an  old  school-mate  of  hers,  and 
had  displayed  the  memory  of  their  childish  intimacy, 
by  doing  all  he  possibly  could  to  increase  the  discomfort 
she  had  experienced  in  her  preliminary  taste  of  Western 
civilization. 

"  You  needn't  look  round  for  him,  Mr.  P ,"  said 

Gregory,  as  he  saw  my  eyes  wandering  round  the  camp, 
with  an  ominous  look  for  him.  "  l^o  sooner  had  your 
lady  recognized  you,  than  the  scamp  cleared  out." 

At  the  instant,  the  employment  of  my  real  name,  for 
the  first  time  in  so  many  years,  as  well  as  the  polite 
appellation  he  had  bestowed  on  "  Mrs.  P ,"  so  com 
pletely  astonished  me,  that  I  momentarily  lost  my  self- 
possession.  After  this  I  could  not  help  laughing,  as  my 
wife  also  did,  although  she,  very  certainly,  could  not 
comprehend  the  motive  which  induced  such  an  audible 
peal  of  merriment  on  my  part.  Then  she  told  me  that 
Mr.  Gregory  had  already  thrashed  Mat,  some  two  days 
since.  At  the  same  time  he  had  told  him,  I  should  be 
made  acquainted  with  his  conduct  the  moment  that  I 
met  the  train.  This  very  clearly  accounted  for  his  dis 
appearance,  without  waiting  for  an  introduction. 

Having  adjusted  the  side-saddle  for  my  wife,  and 
seen  that  she  was  safely  mounted,  I  took  behind  me  what 
positively  needful  articles  she  might  require.  With  a 
friendly  farewell  upon  our  part,  and  a  grateful  leave- 
taking  on  mine  to  those  of  her  fellow-travellers  who  had 
shown  her  kindness,  we  started  across  the  great  Desert. 

Continuing  all  night,  we  broke  fast  next  morning  at 
one  of  the  stage  stations,  and  after  resting  for  an  hour, 
once  more  started. 

From  this  point  the  road  followed  the  river,  and  in 
my  anxiety  to  save  some  eight  or  ten  miles  of  a  track 


196  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

which  I  knew  must  be  toilsome  in  the  extreme  to  a 
female  whose  life  had  not  been  passed  in  this  part  of 
the  country,  I  cut  across  the  low  range  of  hills  by  an 
old  Indian  trail.  When,  however,  I  observed  some  In 
dians  approaching  from  our  right,  I  recognized  the  want 
of  caution  I  had  displayed.  Without  calling  my  wife's 
attention  to  their  dark  specks  in  the  distance,  for  they 
were  a  long  way  from  us,  I  urged  the  horses  into  a 
£harp  gallop,  trusting  they  might  not  have  seen  us.  But 
the  red  man  has  eyes  quite  as  keen  as  the  white  ranger. 
They  changed  their  course,  with  the  evident  purpose  of 
cutting  us  off  from  the  river. 

My  decision  was  rapidly  formed. 

Knowing  we  should  soon  mount  a  small  ridge,  and 
should  on  its  far  side  be  unseen  by  them  for  some  time, 
we  had  no  sooner  crossed  it,  than  I  turned  left  into  the 
ravine  known  as  Six  mile  Canon.  Pushing  rapidly  up 
this,  we  made  our  escape,  and  I  did  not  mention  the  nar 
row  chance  we  had  run  of  an  Indian  fight,  until  my 
wife  and  myself  were  in  sight  of  Virginia  City. 

This  was,  I  may  undoubtedly  say,  the  first  case  in 
which  I  had  turned  tail  on  the  red-skins  without  an  in 
terchange  of  hostile  salutations. 

On  arriving  at  Susanville,  my  friends  told  me  that  the 
Indians  had,  the  day  before,  killed  Loomis  Kellogg  and 
a  man  of  the  name  of  Block,  beside  wounding  Theodore 
Perdum,  at  a  place  more  than  half-way  between 
Laithrop's  Ranch  and  Mud  Springs.  They  had  been 
attacked  by  a  party  of  Indians,  which  were  generally 
in  the  vicinity  of  Honey  Lake  and  closely  upon  the 
Ilumboldt.  These  had  been  baptized  by  the  settlers  as 
the  Sinoke-creek  tribe,  although  by  no  means  a  tribe  in 
the  same  sense  as  the  Pah-utes  and  Modocs  were. 


BUCKSKIN    MO8E.  197 

This  band  of  red-skins  was  composed  of  the  offscour 
ings  of  these  two  tribes  who  had  either  fled  or  been  chased 
from  them,  simply  because  they  were  too  scoundrelly  and 
contemptibly  degraded,  in  the  eyes  of  their  original 
brethren,  to  be  trusted  or  consorted  with. 

Smoke-creek  Sam  was  their  chief.  He  had  earned 
this  pre-eminence  by  being,  at  long  odds,  not  only  the 
most  blood-thirsty  villain  in  this  gang  of  red  devils,  but 
perhaps  the  most  irredeemable  ruffian  the  Indian  history 
of  the  "West  can  chronicle.  The  outrages  in  which  he 
and  his  band  had  been  involved,  both  at  our  immediate 
expense  and  that  of  all  the  settlers  anywhere  in  our 
vicinity,  were  well-nigh  numberless.  During  the  past 
year,  whether  Uncle  Sam's  patience  had  been  worn  out 
by  the  accounts  he  had  received  of  his  namesake's  ras 
cally  and  bloody  offences,  or  from  a  wish  to  make  some 
capital  in  the  East  by  bestowing  a  little  affection  on  his 
"Western  nephew,  it  would  be  impossible  to  say.  He, 
however,  condescended  to  bestow  a  little  attention  upon 
Smoke-creek  Sam.  Some  blue-coats  had  been  sent  out, 
and  two  military  posts  had  been  formed.  These  were, 
respectively,  on  Smoke  and  Granite  Creeks,  in  the  centre 
of  the  sweep  of  country  exposed  to  this  scoundrel's  de 
predations. 

For  a  short  time,  he  became  somewhat  quieter ;  but 
as  the  blue-coats  did  not  busy  themselves  in  punishing 
him,  he  had  again  plucked  up  courage,  and  since  the 
Pah-ute  troubles  had  anew  commenced,  was,  once  more, 
on  the  war-trail. 

Harry  Arnold  had  already  called  the  Buckskin  Ban 
gers  together,  and  they  had  determined  upon  starting 
for  the  purpose,  if  possible,  of  completely  exterminat 
ing  Smoke-creek  Sam  and  his  gang  of  cut-throats. 


198  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

My  presence  in  Susanville  was  speedily  known  by  them, 
and  I  was  unanimously  called  to  take  my  position  as 
the  leader  in  this  expedition. 

The  second  honey-moon  of  my  one  marriage  was, 
therefore,  brought  to  an  end,  or,  rather,  indefinitely  de 
ferred.  It  had,  most  certainly,  scarcely  begun,  unless 
the  commencement  of  such  an  agreeable  period  of  life 
may  be  supposed  to  take  place  in  the  saddle,  and  in 
flight  from  a  party  of  hostile  Indians. 

Short  time  was  allowed  me  to  make  my  wife  as  com 
fortable  as  the  exigencies  of  the  moment  permitted. 
The  little  woman  submitted  to  them  like  a  veritable 
heroine. 

In  something  less  than  an  hour,  we  were  on  our  way 
to  the  spot  where  the  murders  had  taken  place.  While 
going,  we  were  joined  by  two  companies  of  soldiers, 
ordered  out  for  the  same  purpose.  Captain  Knight  was 
in  command  of  them ;  and  shortly  after  we  had  passed 
Summit  Lake,  and  reached  the  place  where  Fort  War 
ner  now  stands,  I  touched  on  a  fresh  Indian  trail. 

My  readers  will  not  be  unlikely  to  inquire  how  in  the 
dry  season  of  the  year,  when  the  cracked  and  parched 
earth  takes  no  footprint,  I  was  able  to  discern  it.  A 
small  pebble  here  and  there,  freshly  turned  over,  or  a 
few  stones  formed  into  a  sign  for  other  red-skins,  either 
to  tell  the  day  of  the  month  on  which  they  passed,*  or 


*  These  stones  are  ranged  in  a  circle  or  semicircle,  to  indicate  the 
quarter  of  the  moon.  Within  these,  the  number  of  fragments  of 
rock  calendars  the  number  of  days  from  it.  Other  signs  tell  whether 
these  indications  are  left  by  a  war  or  hunting  party,  and  how  many 
of  them  there  are.  There  are,  besides,  other  marks,  which  tell  whe 
ther  the  deer  is  in  the  velvet  and  all  the  changes  it  is  subject  to, 
which  are  invaluable  to  the  hunter  who  is  able  to  read  them. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  199 

indicate  the  period  of  the  year,  are  more  than  sufficient 
to  the  ordinary  scout  and  trapper.  In  this  case  the 
first  sign  of  a  trail  had  been  sufficient  for  me.  It  was 
clear  that  a  very  large  number  of  the  red-skins  were  in 
front  of  us,  and,  very  certainly,  scarcely  as  much  as 
twelve  hours  ahead. 

Consequently  I  sent  Arnold  up  the  side  of  the  moun 
tain,  to  see  whether  the  red-skins  might  not  be  still  in 
our  neighborhood. 

The  Rangers  were  on  foot,  and  I  and  Harry  had 
been  in  advance  of  them.  As  I  now  continued,  Captain 
Knight  overtook  me,  almost  immediately  after  I  had 
been  joined  by  Brighton  Bill  and  most  of  the  other 
boys. 

"  They  say,  Mose,  you  are  on  the  trail  ?  " 

"  So  I  am,  Captain." 

"  I  can  see  nothing ! " 

"  Perhaps  not.  It  needs  quick  eyes  to  follow  this 
one." 

"  If  there  really  is  one,"  he  said  sharply. 

His  tone  was  not  the  most  agreeably  confiding  possi 
ble,  and  I  raised  my  eyes  from  the  ground  on  which 
they  had  hitherto  been  fixed,  to  contemplate  him,  when 
Bill  inquired  : 

"'Ow  long,  Cap,  was  hit  since  the  blamed  cusses 
went  by  'ere?" 

"  From  four  to  six  hours.  Possibly,  something  more," 
was  my  answer. 

The  officer  gave  utterance  to  a  low  and  very  dubious 
whistle,  which  unmistakably  suggested  a  disbelief  in 
the  authority  Bill  had  appealed  to.  On  hearing  it  the 
Ranger's  bronzed  face  flushed,  and  he  turned  on  the 
captain,  exclaiming : 


200  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

"  What  Lin  ?ell  do  you  know  habotit  hit  ?  Hi'll  bet 
my  bottom  dollar,  Mose  hain't  made  no  mistake." 

"  Well,  my  lads,"  said  Knight,  who,  I  must  do  him 
justice,  immediately  saw  the  mistake  he  had  made,  "  go 
ahead,  if  you  feel  so  confoundedly  sure  of  the  rascals." 

"  In  course  we  are,"  put  in  Butch'.  "  You  just  leave 
Mose  alone,  and  we'll  have  their  hair,  afore  night." 

By  this  time,  Arnold  had  rejoined  us.  He  had  as  yet 
seen  nothing.  Leaving  him,  therefore,  to  follow  the 
trail,  I  went  up  the  mountain  to  try  my  luck.  As  I 
reached  its  summit,  and  cast  a  careless  glance  down 
the  other  side,  which  was  bare  of  timber,  I  caught  sight 
of  what  I  believed  must  be  our  Indians.  Some  juniper 
trees  concealed  me.  Descending  a  few  paces  on  the 
side  where  I  had  left  the  boys,  I  swung  my  hat.  They 
understood  my  meaning  and  came  to  a  halt.  Arnold 
and  Painter  very  soon  joined  me,  and  carefully  conceal 
ing  our  movements,  we  crept  again  to  the  summit.  As 
they  coincided  with  me,  we  immediately  returned  to 
our  party. 

Upon  informing  Captain  Knight  of  what  we  had 
seen,  he  condescended  to  express  his  gratification,  and 
immediately  ordered  his  men  to  continue  the  trail  we 
had  hitherto  been  pursuing,  and  follow  the  red-skins 
round  the  far  side  of  the  mountain. 

On  my  venturing  to  suggest  that  he  had  better  send 
only  a  portion  of  his  men  up  the  valley,  he  inquired 
what  reason  induced  me  to  advise  such  a  division  of  his 
command. 

"  All  the  red  devils  are  smart  enough,  Captain  ! 
Smoke-creek  Sam  is  'cuter  than  every  Yankee  pedler 
rolled  into  one,  if  that  one  had  been  between  Honey 
Lake  and  the  Humboldt  for  the  last  five  years." 


BUCKSKIN   HOSE.  201 

"  Well !     What  if  he  is  ?  " 

"  lie's  sure  to  smell  us  out.  But  if  you  will  give 
me  part  of  your  men,  I  will  take  them  with  my  boys 
across  the  mountain.  Between  us,  not  a  red-skin  shall 
escape." 

"  That's  so,  Captain  !  "  said  Harry  Arnold,  emphati 
cally.  "  Mose  gives  good  advice." 

Whether  or  no  Harry's  opinion  was  so  little  flatter 
ing  to  his  own  judgment  or  not,  that  he  was  riled  by  the 
preference  given  to  my  counsel,  modestly  as  it  had  been 
offered  him,  I  am  unable  to  say.  With  an  obstinacy 
which  may  be  a  good  thing  in  regular  war,  but  is  surely 
the  reverse  of  it  in  following  Indians,  he  would  neither 
abandon  his  previous  determination,  nor  give  me  one 
of  his  men.  He,  indeed,  did  all  but  order  me  to  con 
tinue  with  him. 

My  back  was  now  up.  To  his  astonishment  he  found 
out  that  I  was  to  the  full  as — perhaps,  even  more  deter 
mined  to  have  my  own  way  in  a  matter  I  thoroughly 
understood,  than  he  was.  Possibly,  although  I  do  not 
like  to  venture  such  an  opinion  touching  any  of  Uncle 
Sam's  servants,  he  may  have  had  no  wish  to  catch  the 
red-skins.  In  entertaining  such  a  disinclination,  he 
would  only  be  imitating  too  closely  the  general  policy 
of  our  respected  relative. 

Whatever  his  wish  may  have  been,  I  ordered  the 
boys  to  their  saddles,  and  leaving  him,  struck  a  long 
canon  we  had  recently  passed,  which  led  us  almost  to 
the  spot  on  which  the  Indians  had  just  been  sighted, 
whom  Arnold  and  Ben  Painter  as  well  as  myself  believed 
to  be  the  Smoke-creek  gang.  When  we  reached  the 
valley  in  which  they  were,  we  found  ourselves  immedi 
ately  ahead  of  the  course  they  were  taking. 
9* 


202  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

No  sooner  had  they  spotted  our  party,  which  it  was 
easy  to  do,  in  a  tract  of  country  almost  entirely  bare  of 
foliage  of  any  description,  than  they  came  to  a  halt. 

We  were  yet  far  beyond  rifle-range,  and  I  actually 
thought  they  were  going  to  give  us  the  chance  of  a  fair 
arid  square  stand-up  fight. 

True,  however,  to  their  invariable  character,  the  red 
men  thought  twice  upon  the  matter.  Turning  from  us 
they  started  up  the  valley,  in  the  direction  Knight's 
command  was  coming.  However,  they  did  not  con 
tinue  their  retreat  (it  was  a  tolerably  rapid  one,  as  our 
pursuit  also  was)  for  more  than  a  mile.  Here  they 
plunged  into  a  rocky  gorge  on  their  left.  Fancying 
that  they  might  intend  drawing  the  Rangers  into  a  trap, 
I  sent  Brighton  Bill  and  four  others  up  the  right  side  of 
the  gorge,  which  was  the  most  precipitous.  Ben  Painter, 
and  some  half-dozen  more,  were  told  to  mount  the  other 
side.  My  directions  were  that  they  should  advance  as 
quickly  as  was  possible,  so  that  they  might  be  able  to 
head  the  party  we  were  pursuing.  It  was  fortunate 
that  the  ground  presented  tolerably  rough  travelling  for 
horses,  or,  as  they  had  necessarily  dismounted,  it  would 
have  been  impossible  for  them  to  do  this. 

After  pursuing  the  uneven  and  broken  track  in  the 
centre  of  the  gorge  for  a  considerable  length,  perhaps 
some  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  it  turned  suddenly  to  the 
right. 

Here  it  formed  a  deep  and  irregular  basin,  from 
which  there  wras  only  one  means  of  escape. 

This  was  a  narrow  and  rocky  defile,  running  up  the 
steep  side  of  the  canon.  As  they  saw  us  behind  them, 
they  endeavored  to  mount  this. 

Bill,  and  the  boys  who  were  with  him,  had,  however, 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  203 

moved  too  quickly.  Scarcely  had  they  entered  the 
defile,  than  he  administered  them  a  sharp  warning  to 
retreat. 

Astounded  by  the  totally  unexpected  warmth  with 
which  they  had  been  saluted,  they  faced  round,  with 
the  intention  of  lighting  their  way  through  their  pur 
suers. 

Upon  reaching  the  bend  of  the  gorge,  at  which  it 
widened  into  this  basin,  Ben's  party  received  them  with 
a  round  volley. 

The  red-skins  now  knew  they  were  fairly  trapped,  and 
drawing  back  into  the  basin,  commenced,  with  the  frag 
ments  of  rock,  to  pile  up  a  rude  sort  of  breastwork. 
As  the  boys  were  dismounting  for  active  business,  a 
blue-coat  suddenly  appeared  upon  the  scene.  The  sol 
diers  had  reached  the  mouth  of  the  gorge,  and  Captain 
Knight  had  despatched  him  to  find  out  what  the  firing 
he  had  heard,  meant. 

It  must  be  owned,  this  was  a  sufficiently  curious  ques 
tion.  As  Arnold  not  unnaturally  asked  the  sergeant, 
who  addressed  it  to  me : 

"  What  the  devil  could  it  mean  ? " 

I  replied  even  more  sharply : 

"  You  can  see  for  yourself.  If  the  Captain  wishes  to 
look  at  a  little  real  Indian  fighting,  he's  got  a  chance." 

Time  and  words  were,  at  this  moment,  too  valuable 
for  me  to  waste  any  more  of  them.  I  again  turned  to 
the  work  on  hand,  and  the  blue-coat  rode  back.  It  may 
be  suspected  he  was  glad  enough  to  do  so,  as  Indian 
bullets  and  arrows  were  at  the  time  rather  lively.  We 
were  left  to  finish  the  affair,  without  the  slightest  as 
sistance  from  the  paid  servants  of  Uncle  Sam.  As  we 
subsequently  had  reason  to  know,  this  was  not,  however, 


204  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

owing  to  any  want  of  courage  on  the  part  of  Captain 
Knight.  His  men  had  proved  too  cowardly  to  lend  us  a 
hand.  They  did  not  relish  exposing  themselves  to  the 
Indians.  Neither  the  angry  commands  nor  threatening 
appeals  of  their  indignant  officer  could  in  any  way  in 
duce  them  to  give  us  an  effective  support. 

Wrathful  as  we  not  unnaturally  felt,  we  had  no 
opportunity  at  the  instant  of  discussing  the  matter  with 
that  righteous  amount  of  Buncombe,  which  is,  in  similar 
cases,  so  gratifying  to  the  average  American  mind. 

It  should  be  mentioned,  nevertheless,  that  one  of  the 
boys  became  fearfully  disgusted  with  the  conduct  of 
his  paid  protectors. 

Indeed,  Mart  Gilbert,  for  such  was  his  name,  jumped 
from  behind  the  mass  of  rock  under  which  he  was 
crouching.  In  his  rage  he  actually  executed  an  indig 
nant  pas  seulj  as  I  should  in  my  earlier  years  have 
styled  it,  in  the  very  face  of  the  enemy.  While  dis 
playing  his  maniacal  agility,  he  roared  out  for  any 
"  darned  red  skunk  "  to  show  himself  and  fight  him. 
None  of  those  to  whom  he  addressed  himself,  however, 
displayed  any  wish  to  accept  his  invitation.  But,  natu 
rally  enough,  they  thought  they  had  an  excellent  chance 
afforded  them  for  picking  him  off.  A  regular  storm  of 
bullets  and  arrows  rang  and  whistled  round  him. 

Fortune  generally  seems  to  have  a  sympathy  with 
madness. 

It  certainly  had  so  in  this  instance.  Not  one  of  these 
missiles  even  scraped  his  body.  And  before  a  second 
volle.y  could  be  discharged  at  him,  with,  in  all  proba 
bility,  a  more  successful  result  for  the  red-skins,  Fainter 
had  crept  to  a  point  from  which  he  could  rake  them  a 
second  time.  This  volley  was  delivered  at  short  range 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  205 

and,  as  an  officer  of  the  regular  army  might  say,  de 
stroyed  their  morale.  As  Ben  subsequently  thought 
proper  to  say,  in  a  more  vernacular  phrase  than  I  choose 
at  present  to  employ,  it  impaired  their  digestion. 

Seeing  the  disorder  into  which  they  were  thrown,  I 
gave  the  boys  the  order  to  advance. 

My  words  were  not  quite  rapid  enough.  The  boys 
Brighton  Bill  had  with  him  were  once  more  in  a  posi 
tion  available  for  following  the  example  those  with 
Painter  had  set  them. 

Demoralized  as  they  were  by  the  second  volley,  the 
red-skins  nevertheless  exhibited  what  Saxons  denomi 
nate  pluck,  and  made  a  furious  rush  upon  the  main 
body  of  their  assailants,  meeting  us  about  half-way  up 
to  their  breastworks.  Our  work  was  now  short  and 
thorough. 

Harry  and  myself  had  not  dismounted.  He  was  a 
capital  horseman,  and  rode  in  Comanche .  style,  better 
even  than  I  did.  It  was  in  this  fashion  that  he  ap 
proached  an  old  Indian  who  was  literally  hailing  his 
arrows  at  us,  and  shot  him  from  under  the  neck  of  his 
horse.  Ridding  his  hand  of  the  revolver  which  was 
attached  to  his  wrist  by  a  strap,  he  rushed  the  animal 
past  his  prostrate  enemy,  and  took  his  scalp  very  neatly, 
almost  at  the  same  instant  recovering  his  seat. 

The  red-skin,  however,  although  dropped  by  Arnold's 
shot,  very  evidently  disapproved  of  the  loss  of  his  hair. 
Raising  himself  from  the  ground,  precisely  at  the  mo 
ment  when  the  former  reappeared  above  the  back  of  his 
horse,  he  let  fly  another  arrow. 

This  struck  Harry  in  the  back  of  the  neck,  imme 
diately  behind  the  vertebral  bones,  passing  directly 
through  it  for  more  than  half  its  length. 


206  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

No  time  was  given  the  Indian  for  another  shot,  as  I 
was  sufficiently  near  to  settle  him. 

"  I  say,  Mose!  lend  me  a  hand." 

On  looking  round,  I  could  not  forbear  laughing. 
The  manner  in  which  the  arrow  had  passed  through 
Arnold's  neck  compelled  him  to  protrude  his  head  in 
front  of  him  in  such  a  strangely  quaint  fashion.  Mirth 
would  have  been  compulsory,  even  in  one  at  the  point  of 
death. 

Of  course,  while  laughing,  I  had  pulled  out  the  un 
pleasant  addition  to  his  muscular  anatomy. 

Upon  counting  the  bodies  of  the  dead,  we  found  sev 
enteen.  The  remainder  of  the  party  had  managed  to 
effect  an  escape. 

After  this  we  returned  to  the  mouth  of  the  gorge, 
where  we  did  not  find  Captain  Knight  and  the  blue- 
coats  waiting  for  us.  We  felt  considerably  mortified  by 
the  fact,  that  although  the  slain  red-skins  might  have 
been  a  portion  of  Smoke-creek  Sam's  band,  he  himself 
was,  as  decidedly,  not  amongst  them. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

ANOTHER  ATTEMPT  AT  A  HONEY-MOON — LEARNING  AND  LOVING — 
Two  UNEXPECTED  RECRUITS— PLENTY  OP  WORK  TO  Do— A 
FEW  OF  THE  SAINTS — WHAT  A  PITY  HE  is  NOT  AN  INDIAN— 
SIGHTING  THE  ENEMY — FREEZING  WEATHER— SOME  CLEVER 
GENERALSHIP — THE  FIGHT  IN  THE  RIVER — A  NARROW 
ESCAPE — DESTROYING  SUPPLIES — A  LITTLE  MINING— HOME 
AGAIN. 

ON  returning  to  Susan  ville,  I  had  the  satisfaction  of 
resuming  my  interrupted  honey-moon,  and  learning  from 
my  wife  in  our  lovingly  long  talks  together,  much  about 
my  friends,  which  no  letter  is  ever  voluminous  enough 
to  tell.  To  say  the  truth,  letters  are  nothing  but  the 
headings  of  the  chapters  of  life,  condensed  according  to 
the  peculiar  temperament  of  the  writer.  Sometimes, 
they  give  scarcely  any  idea  of  the  real  contents.  Not 
infrequently,  they  afford  an  unqualifiedly  false  index  to 
that  which  they  are  in  a  measure  supposed  to  represent. 

Moreover,  she  was  far  more  of  a  woman  than  she 
had  been.  Self-dependence  had  in  a  measure  changed 
her,  as  my  life  on  the  frontier  had  altered  me. 

I  had  to  re-study  her  nature,  as  she  very  certainly  had 
to  re-learn  mine. 

There  were  many  moments  when,  in  spite  of  her  love 
I  caught  her  studying  my  face  as  if  she  was  scarcely 
able  to  realize  how  completely  the  crude  civilization 
of  frontier-life  had  warped  mine,  for  the  better  or  the 
worse.  While  I,  as  frequently,  detected  myself  won 
dering  at  the  change  a  few  years  of  absence  had  made 


208  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

in  the  girl  I  had  loved  well  enough  to  tic  myself  to  for 
life. 

Yet,  I  believe,  the  change  was  not  an  unpleasant  one 
to  either  of  us.  At  least,  I  may  safely  affirm  that  it  was 
not  so  to  me. 

The  summer  and  great  portion  of  the  autumn  passed 
but  too  quickly.  Some  few  weeks  of  them  had  been 
spent  with  the  boys  at  our  mining  claims  on  the  Hum- 
hold  t.  Nor  were  we,  on  the  whole,  unsuccessful,  having 
made  a  tolerably  fair  pile,  in  reward  for  our  labor. 
When  the  autumn  was  nearly  over,  my  companions 
went  up  the  river  as  far  as  Gravelly  Ford,  with  the 
intention  of  pitching  their  camp  there  for  the  winter. 
This  was  with  the  purpose  of  hunting  and  trapping.  I 
had  to  keep  the  agreement  already  made  with  Colonel 
Connor.  After  leaving  my  pet  bear,  Charley,  in  the 
care  of  Butch',  with  whom  lie  was  almost  as  friendly  as 
he  was  with  me,  I,  therefore,  again  rejoined  my  wife  for 
a  brief  time,  while  I  commenced  my  preparations. 

These  were  prolonged  until  the  last  moment,  when  I 
was  astonished  by  a  visit  from  Harry  Arnold  and 
Brighton  Bill,  whom  I  had  left  scarcely  more  than  a 
week  since  at  Gravelly  Ford.  In  my  surprise  I  asked  : 

"  What,  in  the  name  of  Heaven !  brings  you  back 
here  3 " 

"  Can't  you  guess,  Mose  ? "  Harry  asked. 

"  Has  anything  happened  ?  " 

"  Nothing  particular." 

This  was  the  reply  of  the  previous  speaker,  as  Bill 
added,  with  his  peculiarly  British  pronunciation : 

*'  We've  made  h'np  hour  minds  to  pull  h'up  stakes  and 
join  you." 

"  What  do  you  really  mean  ? " 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  209 

The  question  was  far  from  an  unnatural  one.  My 
engagement  with  the  Colonel  had  been  repeatedly 
talked  over  with  the  boys  when  they  were  present. 
Neither  of  them,  up  to  this  time,  had  displayed  the 
slightest  indication  of  a  desire  to  accompany  me. 

"  To  henlist  with  hour  Cap ! "  exclaimed  Bill. 

"  That's  exactly  what  we  mean." 

I  was  but  too  glad  to  have  them  with  me,  and  felt 
sure  Connor  would  be  even  more  pleased.  A  few  hours 
were  sufficient  for  them  to  get  ready,  and  on  the  follow 
ing  morning  the  three  of  us  quitted  Susanville. 

For  some  hours  after  leaving  it,  I  felt  as  I  had  never 
before  done,  when  starting  on  any  expedition.  The 
tear-blurred  eyes  of  my  wife  kept  painting  themselves 
before  me.  It  must  be  remembered  how  long  we  had 
been  separated  from  each  other,  and  how  recently,  for 
the  second  time,  wre  had  again  commenced  married  life. 
Even  the  gay  jests  of  Arnold,  and  the  coarser,  but 
equally  well-meant  consolation  of  Brighton  Bill,  failed 
to  restore  my  usually  blithe  spirits  until  the  noon  was 
long  past. 

Movement  and  action,  however,  possess  a  large  de 
gree  of  comfort  in  them. 

By  this  time  I  had  recovered  my  equanimity,  and  on 
the  following  day  I  was  as  gay  as  either  of  them. 
Nothing  of  note  beyond  the  common  everyday  occur 
rences  of  travel  of  this  class  occurred  while  we  were  on 
our  road,  until  we  reached  Egan  Canon.  Here  we  met 
some  of  Connor's  men,  who  had  been  stationed  there  to 
protect  the  Overland  stages.  Thence  we  passed  through 
Camp  Floyd  to  Stockton,  where  we  found  the  Colonel's 
command  encamped  near  a  small  lake.  Both  lie  and 
Major  Gallagher  welcomed  me  in  the  most  cordial  man- 


210  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

uer.  On  presenting  my  two  companions,  whose  names 
were  well  known  to  both  of  them,  this  cordiality  was 
greatly  increased. 

"  I  knew  we  had  secured  one  good  man  when  we  got 
you  to  join  us,"  said  Connor.  "  But  I  little  thought 
you  would  bring  us  two  more,  as  good  as  yourself." 

He  then  informed  us  that  we  might  take  things  as 
easily  as  we  chose  for  the  next  few  days,  after  which,  he 
quietly  said,  he  trusted  to  give  us  plenty  of  work. 
Arnold  replied: 

"  The  more  of  it,  Colonel,  the  bettter." 

The  hearty  readiness  with  which  this  answer  was 
made,  seemed  to  please  him  very  much.  When,  shortly 
after,  he  left  us,  I  heard  him  say  to  Gallagher : 

"  We  are  in  luck,  Major!" 

Nor  can  I  be  charged  with  undue  vanity,  in  supposing 
his  congratulatory  sentence  referred  to  myself  and  my 
two  companions. 

We  necessarily  resigned  ourselves  to  the  comfort  or 
discomfort,  as  man  chooses  to  consider  it,  of  doing 
nothing  for  the  following  week,  or  somewhat  less.  One 
morning,  however,  we  were  startled  by  a  visit  from  the 
notorious  Port  Rockwell,  Bill  Hickmau,  Lot  Smith,  and 
others  of  the  so-called  Mormon  Dauites.  Why  they 
came  was,  of  course,  none  of  our  business.  Yet,  we  had 
heard  too  much  of  them  to  fail  in  examining  them 
closely,  and  I  am  free  to  own  I  was  not  too  deeply  im 
pressed  by  the  sanctity  of  their  appearance.  The 
greater  portion  of  them  were,  however,  pretty  muscular 
examples  of  saintship,  and  exhibited,  what  I  always 
supposed  they  would,  considerable  oiliness  as  a  veneer  to 
their  even  less  pure  and  peaceable  proclivities.  While 
we  were  inspecting  them,  I  could  not  refrain  from  ask- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  211 

ing  Arnold  what  lie  thought  of  them.  He  delayed  a 
minute  or  two  in  making  his  reply,  and  Brighton  Bill 
improved  the  occasion  by  propounding  to  me  in  a 
solemn,  and  exceedingly  audible  voice,  the  following 
query : 

"  H'i  say,  Mose !  'ave  they  h'all  ha  dozen  wives 
h'apiece  ? " 

u  I  suppose  so,  Bill,"  I  replied  with  a  quiet  smile. 

"  'Eaven  take  care  of  'em ! "  he  ejaculated  with  a 
mournful  air  of  pity. 

"  What  ?  of  these  fellows  ?  " 

"  No !  Mose !  IPof  the  poor  lambs  that  hare  tied  hup 
to  such  ha  blamed  lot  of  Turks.  H'if  Hi  had  my  will 
with  the  blackguards,  Ili'd  lock  'em  hup,  hin  the  Hold 
Bailey,  or,"  he  added  reflectively,  as  if  he  feared  I  might 
not  understand  the  character  of  the  place  he  had  al 
luded  to,  u  four  prison-walls  for  the  'ole  of  their  life." 

My  companion  had  announced  his  views,  with  regard 
to  the  Dam'tes,  in  tones  which  were  something  too  loud. 
They  were  very  evidently  heard  by  Bill  Hickman,  who 
turned  to  look  at  him.  As  he  did  so,  Harry  for  the  first 
time  spoke  in  a  voice  whose  pitch  was  decidedly  in 
tended  to  reach  the  saintly  ears. 

"  A  truly  delightful  face,  Mose ! " 

"Do  you  think  so?" 

"  How  I  wish  he  was  a  red-skin ! " 

"  Blamed  hif  you  h'arn't  right,  Hank ! "  cried  Bill, 
"  'ow  neat  you  could  track  and  wipe  'im  hout." 

The  part  of  this  conversation  which  had  been  audible 
to  Hickman,  could  scarcely  have  been  highly  agreeable. 

Yery  certainly,  I  never  saw  a  more  diabolical  scowl 
spread  over  any  face,  than  did  over  his.  It  was,  how 
ever,  no  very  great  length  of  time  before  they  left  us. 


212  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

"  I  would  scarcely  fid  vise  you,  Harry  !  to  come  in  St. 
Hickman's  way,"  I  remarked  when  they  were  quitting 
the  camp,  "  without  having  your  revolver  quite  ready." 

"  I  don't  intend  to,  Mose !  "  he  replied,  with  a  sharp 
laugh. 

Some  two  days  after  this,  Colonel  Connor  detailed 
me  to  accompany  a  detachment  under  the  command  of 
Lieutenant  Ether,  up  through  the  .Bear  River  country. 
Arnold  was  assigned  to  another,  which  was  to  take  the 
road  through  Ogden  Canon,  while  a  third  was  provided 
with  Brighton  Bill  as  a  guide,  and  were  to  go  in  the  di 
rection  of  Goose  Creek  and  the  City  of  Rocks.  The 
two  parties  were  to  meet  near  Soda  Springs. 

Our  detachment  had  only  been  out  for  a  few  days,* 
when  I,  who  was  a  long  way  in  advance,  sighted  a  large 
body  of  Indians.  Necessarily  I  fell  back,  and  reported 
this  to  the  officer  in  command.  He  immediately  sent 
information  of  this  to  Colonel  Connor.  Afterwards,  I 
heard  that  the  two  other  parties  had  made  a  similar  dis 
covery,  and  sent  him  intelligence  to  the  same  effect. 
He  immediately  ordered  his  whole  command  to  march 
towards  Bear  River,  having  sent  instructions  to  the  re 
maining  detachments.  The  interval  which  elapsed  be 
fore  he  joined  us,  was  passed  by  me  in  keeping  a  keen 
look-out  for  the  Indians.  From  the  very  first,  I  had 
seen  that  the  colonel  was  a  widely  different  class  of  offi 
cer  from  any  of  the  servants  of  Uncle  Sam  I  had  yet 
met.  If  he  meant  business,  it  would  be  a  pity  to  balk 
good  intentions,  and  it  should  not  be  iny  fault  if  he 
failed  to  have  plenty  of  it.  Consequently,  I  did  not 

*  During  our  absence,  Colonel  Connor  established  Camp  Douglas, 
a  few  miles  from  Salt  Lake  City.  It  was  on  a  rising  ground,  and  very 
thoroughly  commanded  the  Mormon  capital. 


BUCKSKIN    HOSE.  213 

feel  disposed  to  let  the  red-skins  slip,  from  my  neglect 
to  keep  my  eyes  wide  open. 

No  sooner  had  he  joined  ns  and  received  my  daily 
reports  from  Lieutenant  Ether,  as  well  as  the  last  one 
from  myself,  than  he,  in  person,  made  a  reconnaissance. 

The  result  was,  that  he  came  to  the  conclusion  already 
formed  by  me,  that  the  Indians  were  concentrating  their 
forces  on  Bear  River. 

It  was  in  the  dead  of  winter,  and  the  temperature  was 
intensely  cold.  The  soldiers  were  suffering  dreadfully, 
and  but  for  the  kindness  and  precaution  of  their  colonel 
for  them,  many  must  have  been  lost  or  have  perished  by 
their  exposure.  He  was  a  very  strict  disciplinarian. 
There  was,  however,  not  one  of  his  men  who  did  not 
love  him  the  better  for  an  inflexibility  which  was 
equally  resolute  in  as  far  as  possible  providing  for  their 
comfort.  This  case  was  clearly  one  of  necessity.  If 
the  Indians  moved  in  this  bitterly  freezing  weather,  his 
men  were  obliged  to  move  also.  Nor  did  he  shrink 
from  sharing  their  sufferings  and  labors. 

Consequently,  on  the  following  morning  we  started 
early  on  our  way  up  the  river,  continuing  until  we  were 
within  ten  miles  of  the  Soda  Springs. 

Here,  we  saw  the  red-skins  encamped  in  a  strong  po 
sition  on  the  other  side  of  the  stream.  It  was  almost  a 
natural  fortification,  being  protected  by  a  deep  canon 
and  huge  rocks.  While  we  were  advancing,  they  fired 
on  us.  Their  shots,  however,  failed.  We  were  out  of 
the  range  of  their  guns.  Colonel  Connor's  dispositions 
for  the  attack  were  simple  in  the  extreme,  but  very  mas 
terly.  He  ordered  one  party  up  the  river  to  occupy  a 
bluff  which  projected  into  it.  Another  was  sent  down 
the  stream  to  take  their  position  on  the  bank  which 


214  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

commanded  it,  at  no  very  great  distance.     The  fire  from 
either  spot  commanded  the  passage  of  the  river. 

When  these  two  points  were  held,  he  ordered  the 
main  body  to  ford  the  stream,  still  keeping  a  portion  of 
his  force  in  reserve. 

Bitterly  cold  as  the  water  was,  and  as  I  found  it,  the 
soldiers  did  not  evince  the  faintest  shadow  of  hesitation 
when  he  gave  the  word. 

Up  to  this  moment,  I  believe  the  red-skins  did  not 
believe  that  Connor  would  attack  them.  Scarcely  un 
reasonably,  they  counted  too  much  upon  their  past  ex 
periences  with  Uncle  Sam's  blue-coats.  In  the  present 
case,  the  blue-coats  were  tarred  with  a  widely  different 
brush.  They  had  barely  seen  us  in  the  river,  than  a 
rolling  series  of  yells  and  whoops  broke  from  them, 
which  it  would  be  utterly  useless  for  words  to  attempt 
giving  any  idea  of.  The  wall  of  icily  chill  water  they 
had  counted  on  to  secure  the  front  of  their  camp  was 
useless.  They  had  to  fight,  and  dashed  into  the  stream 
to  drive  back  the  enemy.  Not  more  than  one  minute 
had  they  plunged  into  the  freezing  water,  than  from 
the  bank  and  bluff  rang  out  the  rifles  of  the  men  Con 
nor  had  posted  there. 

It  was  a  terrible  discharge,  and  drove  them  back.  As 
they  found  themselves  on  dry  earth,  our  gallant  fellows 
followed  them. 

Dripping  witli  the  water,  which  would  have  frozen  on 
them,  but  for  the  savagely  fierce  passion  of  that  terribly 
mad  struggle — shooting,  clubbing,  knifing,  with  the 
shouts  and  yells  of  actual  devils — never  do  I  believe  a 
more  bitter  strife,  considering  its  numbers,  has  been 
seen  on  any  battle-field.  It  took  two  hours  of  hard 
fighting  for  us  to  completely  rout  them.  This  is  the 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  215 

first  time  I  have  ever  applied  such  a  term  to  the  defeat 
of  a  body  of  red-skins,  simply  because  it  is  the  first 
time  in  which  I  ever  saw  them  really  stand  up  and 
fight. 

Often  enough  they  slay  when  their  numbers  are  fif 
teen  to  one,  or  are  slain  if  the  proportion  chances  to  be 
an  inferior  one.  It  is,  nevertheless,  very  rarely  that 
they  resist  an  open  attack.  This,  more  especially  when 
it  is  made  by  any  force  which,  in  number,  approaches 
their  own. 

When  the  last  living  Indian  had  fled,  orders  had  been 
given  us  to  destroy  their  supplies.  There  were  several 
tons  of  dried  meats,  Government  bacon,  sugar,  with  no 
inconsiderable  amount  of  whiskey  and  United  States 
blankets,  besides  tobacco  and  other  articles  of  native 
luxury.  The  red  rascals  had  evidently  a  good  commis 
sariat,  and  had  provided  themselves  for  what  they  im 
agined  would  be  a  lengthy  campaign.  We  also  found 
a  large  quantity  of  powder.  This  we  rolled  into  the 
river,  and  burned  the  rest. 

In  the  meantime,  our  men  who  had  not  been  employed 
in  this  necessary  task,  had  been  reckoning  those  who 
had  been  killed. 

About  one  hundred  and  nineteen  dead  bodies  were,  I 
believe,  counted  in  all. 

The  effects  of  the  battle  of  Bear  River  were  for  the 
time  decisive  in  pacifying  this  section  of  the  country, 
and  compelling  the  Indians  in  the  whole  neighborhood 
to  remain  quiet.  And,  may  I  not  here,  in  all  proper 
humility,  ask  our  Government  why  it  does  not  con 
stantly  employ  such  men  as  Colonel  Connor  to  enforce 
peace  upon  the  red-skins.  Let  it  give  us  an  Indian 
Bureau  in  the  Cabinet.  Place  it  in  the  control  of  such 


216  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

a  man  as  General  Sheridan,  General  Cook,  or  other  al 
most  equally  able  military  men,  whose  names  will  readily 
suggest  themselves  to  the  reader.  Give  this  Bureau 
unchecked  authority  to  deal  with  the  red  man.  It  will 
sweep  away  the  whole  race  of  thieving  Indian  agents, 
and  save  the  country  many  a  dollar,  as  well  as  many  a 
more  valuable  life  which  at  present  would  seem  to  rep 
resent  no  positive  value  to  the  Government  of  the 
United  States. 

Perhaps,  I  should  mention  the  narrow  escape  the 
officer,  whose  detachment  I  had  been  detailed  to  ac 
company  on  its  advance  in  this  direction,  had,  during  the 
battle. 

It  was  well  nigh  over.  He  was  on  the  summit  of  a 
small  ridge  of  rock  which  jutted  from  the  eastern  side 
of  the  camping-ground,  when  a  red-skin  fired  on  him, 
scarcely  from  a  distance  of  some  twenty  yards.  The 
ball  missed  Ether,  but  grazed  the  cheek  of  Hughey 
Greer,  a  private  who  was  close  to  him.  Wheeling 
round,  Greer  saw  the  Indian  and  took  him  between  the 
eyes  with  a  shot  from  his  revolver,  killing  him  instantly. 
Greer  subsequently  received  promotion. 

Naturally  enough,  the  results  of  this  victory  enabled 
the  Colonel  to  dispense  with  my  services,  although  he 
would  willingly  have  retained  me  longer  with  him. 
Shortly  after,  Arnold,  Brighton  Bill,  and  myself,  there 
fore  started  for  Idaho  City,  with  the  intention  of  again 
trying  our  luck  in  mining.  We  located  a  placer  or 
claim  on  Bannock  Bar,  just  above  the  Marion  Moore 
claim.  This  turned  out  very  favorably.  After  work 
ing  it  for  nearly  two  months,  we  sold  it  to  Henry 
Allen  for  a  fairly  round  price,  and  determined  upon 
making  our  return  to  Honey  Lake. 


CHAPTEK  XY. 

OFF  TO  THE  NEW  MINES— " GOD'S  COUNTRY"— A  SHOWER  OF 
SPARKS — THE  CHEYENNE  MAIDEN — SEEING  is  BELIEVING — 
A  SHARP  WAIL — BEHIND  THE  BRUSH — THE  LEAP  LIKE  A 
WILD-CAT— THE  EFFECT  OF  UNPALATABLE  NEWS— EVADING 
CROSS-QUESTIONING— THREE  DAYS'  FIGHTING — THE  ENEMY 
PREPARING  FOR  VICTORY — ADVICE  FROM  EXPERIENCE — Two 
BRAVE  FELLOWS— BACON-FAT%ND  A  KNIFE— WAITING  AND 
HOPING. 

BUT  we  were  destined  not  to  return  as  quietly  as  we 
had  proposed  doing.  Upon  our  arrival  at  Boice  City,  we 
were  induced  to  join  a  company  who  were  going  to 
Jordan  Creek  for  the  purpose  of  prospecting.  It  had 
been  made  up  by  Jeff  Stanaford  and  another  man  of  the 
name  of  Jennings.  After  depositing  our  gold-dust, 
therefore,  with  Wells,  Fargo  and  Company,  one  of  whose 
branch-offices  was  in  this  place,  we  started  with  our  new 
acquaintances  for  the  spot  named,  which  Stanaford  as 
serted  from  his  own  personal  knowledge,  was  very  rich. 

All  told,  our  party  numbered  some  twenty-seven  men 
well  armed  and  provided. 

When  some  three  or  four  days  out,  we  camped  at  noon, 
about  four  o'clock,  on  a  small  rocky  knoll,  from  the 
summit  of  which  a  deliciously  clear  and  cool  spring 
was  oozing.  Round  the  rise  of  this  knoll  there  was 
excellent  pasturage  for  our  horses,  and  stretching  beyond 
this  on  every  side  was  a  level  plain,  broken  up  with 
small  sage-brush.  At  night-fall,  our  horses  were  brought 
in  and  picketed  closed  to  the  spring.  No  suspicion  of 
the  slightest  danger  was  entertained  by  us.  Indeed,  we 
10 


218  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

all  of  us  slept  soundly  during  the  first  part  of  the  night, 
save  Jennings,  who  was  on  the  watch. 

Some  three  hours  before  dawn,  however,  I  became 
restless,  and  my  slumbers  were  broken.  A  feeling  of 
impending  danger  seemed  to  present  itself  to  me,  which 
I  was  unable  to  shake  off.  ^ 

Sitting  up,  I  looked  around.  The  night  was  as  dark 
as  pilch.  Nothing  could  be  seen  by  me,  save  the  forms 
stretched  upon  the  grass  by  the  dying  embers  of  the 
camp-fire,  which  scarcely  gave  light  enough  to  detect 
them.  I,  however,  managed  to  make  out  the  figure  of 
Jennings,  who  was  sitting  on  the  ground  at  a  little  dis 
tance.  He  was  leaning  forward  upon  his  rifle,  and  was, 
I  at  once  felt  certain,  fast  asleep. 

Possibly  somewhat  annoyed  by  this  carelessness,  I  had 
caught  up  one  of  the  half-extinguished  brands  from  the 
fire,  and  was  about  hurling  it  at  him,  when  I  felt  a  light 
hand  touch  my  shoulder. 

The  brand  fell  from  my  grasp  as  I  rapidly  turned,  and 
the  scattering  sparks  thrown  from  its  burning  end 
showed  me  a  face  which,  since  I  had  first  looked  on  it, 
had  never  entirely  passed  from  my  memory. 

How  it  was,  my  lips  did  not  give  utterance  to  a  cry 
of  astonishment,  it  is  now,  as  it  would  have  been  then, 
im]X)ssiblc  for  me  to  say. 

There  were  the  superbly  dark  eyes,  whose  eloquence 
of  expression  I  had  never  forgotten.  There  was  that 
wealthy  mass  of  raven  hair,  which  had  crowned  the  head 
of  the  Cheyenne  maiden,  for  whom  I  had  so  nearly 
thrust  from  me  the  memory  of  the  little  woman  1  had 
left  behind  me  in  the  East,  or  "  God's  country,"  as  so 
many  of  the  settlers  and  trappers  call  it. 

It  was  Clo-ke-ta. 


BUCKSKIN   M08E.  219 

As  she  moved  slowly  away,  I  rose  to  my  feet  and  fol 
lowed  her. 

I  seemed  to  be  in  a  dream. 

All  I  remember  is,  that  the  sleeper  near  me,  on  my 
right,  stirred.  My  movement  had  startled  him.  He, 
nevertheless,  did  not  wake. 

Pausing  for  an  instant  where  the  horses  were  picketed, 
I  once  more  heard  her  voice. 

Although  in  a  whisper,  it  was  riper,  fuller  and  more 
womanly  than  when  it  last  sounded  on  my  ears. 

"  Let  my  brother  take  his  horse." 

"  Why  should  he  do  so  ?  I  asked  in  a  tone  no  louder 
than  hers  had  been. 

"  My  brother  must  have  many  miles  between  himself 
and  this  place,  before  the  dawn." 

"And  why?" 

"  Clo-ke-ta's  master  " — the  intonation  of  this  epithet 
was  scornful,  and,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  full  of  regret, 
which  she  disdained  suppressing — "has  his  braves  gath 
ered  around." 

"  Is  Clo-ke-ta,  then,  married  ? " 

I  could  not  help  the  passionate  inflexion  with  which  I 
framed  this  whisper.  For  the  moment,  I  had  not  only 
forgotten  the  wife  who  had  so  recently  joined  me,  but 
the  very  information  the  Cheyenne  woman  had  just 
given  me. 

"  The  daughter  of  Par-a-wau  could  not  go  childless 
to  the  grave." 

"  Certainly  not,"  I  answered  mechanically. 

My  memory  had  bridged  the  intervening  years  be 
tween  the  present  and  the  time  when  the  parent  of  Clo- 
ke-ta,  as  well  as  Old  Spotted  Tail,  had  done  me  the  honor 
of  wishing  to  enroll  me  as  a  Cheyenne  chief. 


220  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  Will  my  brother  do  as  Clo-ke-ta  has  bidden  him  ? " 

The  impatience  of  the  request  was  more  like  her 
father's  manner  and  voice  than  anything  she  had  yet 
said.  It  recalled  me  to  the  life  of  my  present. 

"And  who  is  Clo-ke-ta's  husband  ? " 
•      "  A  Bannock  chief." 

"  The  Indians  from  whom  I  am  then  to  fly  are  the 
Bannocks?" 

"  My  brother  is  right." 

"  Does  not  Clo-ke-ta  know  that  the  braves  with  her 
brother  are  numerous." 

"  The  Bannocks  who  are  waiting  for  the  dawn,  num 
ber  more  than  the  leaves  of  the  sage-brusli  my  brother 
has  seen,  before  he  laid  himself  down  to  rest." 

Figurative  as  the  expression  was,  there  was  no  mis 
taking  its  significance.  We  were  decidedly  in  for  it,  if 
her  words  were  true,  in  even  the  thousandth  or  ten- 
thousandth  part  of  her  somewhat  extensive  style  of 
reckoning  the  forces  of  our  enemy.  However,  my  ex 
perience  of  the  Indian  character  for  veracity  had  greatly 
modified  the  faith  which,  when  I  first  knew  her,  I  might 
have  placed  in  her  words.  Considering  our  former  re 
lations,  it  would  seem  to  be  a  matter  of  difficulty  to 
make  her  understand  this.  But  life  in  the  hills  and 
plains  of  the  West  considerably  impairs  sentimental 
delicacy  in  conversation,  even  witii  one  whom  a  man 
hkd  so  narrowly  escaped  from  wedding,  as  I  had  her. 
After  a  brief  pause,  I  said  : 

"  What  the  white  man  sees,  he  believes." 

"  What  says  my  brother  ? " 

"  Let  Clo-ke-ta  prove  her  words,  to  his  eyes!" 

"  The  white  chief  does  not  think  Clo-ke-ta  has  told 
him  the  truth  1" 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  221 

Her  whisper  was  shapen  so  contemptuously  that,  at  the 
moment,  I  could  almost  have  bitten  out  my  tongue  in 
wrath  at  what  it  had  given  breath  to.  However,  it  was 
of  importance  that  I  should  know  whether  her  informa 
tion  had  been  exaggerated  or  not.  I  consequently  re 
plied  : 

"  He  does  not." 

Her  fingers  were  laid  upon  my  arm  with  an  impera 
tive  gesture,  as  she  whispered  in  a  tone  where  scorn  and 
affection  were  curiously  blended  : 

"  Let  the  white  chief  follow  Clo-ke-ta.  But  his  feet 
must  be  as  light  as  the  first  leaf  the  autumn  wind 
strews  upon  the  plain." 

As  her  last  word  fell  upon  my  ear,  she  glided  away 
from  me.  Nor  was  it  without  some  difficulty  I  kept 
my  sight  upon  her  undulating  form,  as  my  steps  sped 
noiselessly»after. 

We  must  have  covered  some  eight  hundred  yards,  or 
possibly  less,  when  she  pointed  a  little  to  my  right,  in 
advance  of  the  spot  we  had  reached.  There  I  saw  the 
struggling  light  of  a  small  camp-fire,  carefully  smothered 
down  with  the  torn-up  roots  of  sage-brush,  as  I  concluded, 
and  could  just  make  out  the  forms  of  the  slumbering 
red-skins  around  it.  Still  further  on  the  right  I  caught 
the  faint  glow  of  another.  To  the  left,  I  could  just 
make  oat  two  more ;  the  farthest  of  these  was  so  distant, 
that  it  was  no  larger,  although  less  defined,  than  the 
flash  of  the  fire-flies  I  had  been  accustomed  to  watch 
round  my  home  in  Galena,  even  earlier  than  the  period 
at  which  I  commenced  this  history  of  my  adventures. 
As  I  turned  towards  her  again,  she  said  in  a  lower  voice 
even  than  she  had  previously  adopted : 

"  My  brother  has  sharp  eyes." 


222  BUCKSKIN  MOSE. 

"He  has." 

"  Does  lie  now  believe  what  Clo-ke-ta  has  told  him  ? " 

"Yes." 

"  And  he  will  listen  to  her  counsel  3  " 

"  He  cannot." 

"Why?" 

"  He  is  a  white  brave." 

"  Clo-ke-ta  knows  it." 

"  The  red  man  might  run  away,  by  himself.  Who 
would  call  him  a  coward  ? " 

"  His  tribe  would—" 

She  commenced  thus,  indignantly.  Then  she  saw 
the  error  she  was  committing,  and  broke  short  off,  as  I 
continued  : 

"  Without  those  who  are  with  him  can  fly  too,  the 
white  brave  must  remain." 

A  single  sharp  wail  of  grief  rose  from  h^r  lips.  As 
it  did  so,  I  threw  myself  upon  the  ground  and  speedily 
commenced  crawling  back  as  rapidly  as  I  could,  to  the 
camp. 

Such  a  cry  was  enough  to  arouse  every  sleeping  Ban 
nock  who  might  be  within  earshot  of  her,  and  quicken 
them  to  my  presence. 

One  glance  I  cast  upon  her,  before  the  darkness 
blotted  her  out  from  my  sight.  She  was  standing  erect 
and  motionless,  and  it  appeared  to  me  that  she  made  a 
gesture  with  one  of  her  arms  as  if  to  quicken  my  move 
ments.  There  was  no  need  for  her  to  do  so.  The  neces 
sity  for  my  reaching  my  friends  was  too  obvious.  Un 
less  I  was  detected,  she  would  be  safe. 

Already  I  had  covered  half  the  distance  between  the 
place,  where  I  had  paused  with  her,  and  our  camp,  when 
I  rested  for  a  moment.  It  was  an  almost  compulsory 


1 '  Does  my  brother  now  believe  \vhat  Clo-ke-ta  has  told  him  ? ' " 
-Page  222. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  223 

pause.  The  speed  with  which  my  retreat  had  been 
commenced,  and  the  position  in  which  it  had  been 
made,  had  for  the  moment  taken  away  my  breath. 
There  was  now  also,  in  the  darkness,  no  absolute  neces 
sity  for  my  continuing  my  creeping  posture.  I  had, 
therefore,  half  risen  to  my  feet,  when  I  caught  the 
rapid  sound  of  Indian  footsteps.  A  red-skin  was  be 
hind  me. 

Remaining  upon  my  knee,  I  drew  my  knife,  and 
listened.  There  was,  evidently,  only  one  who  had  dis 
believed  what  Clo-ke-ta  might  have  said.  Possibly, 
although  this  is  very  unlikely,  one  only  may  have  been 
awakened  by  her  wail. 

Had  there  been  more  than  the  one,  I  might  have  used 
my  revolver,  for  the  purpose  of  alarming  the  boys.  If 
I  had  done  so,  it  must  have  brought  out  the  rest  of  the 
red  devils.  We  had  need  of  time  for  consultation. 
Could  I  get  rid  of  my  pursuer,  without  giving  him  the 
chance  for  one  dying  whoop,  we  should,  at  least,  have 
this. 

A  clump  of  sage-brush  would  have  hidden  me  from 
the  rapidly  approaching  Indian,  even  had  the  dawn  been 
already  breaking. 

He  could  only  have  fancied  he  heard  my  stealthy 
flight,  as  I  knew  I  heard  his  rapidly  approaching, 
tread. 

Now  he  was  close  to  the  sage-brush,  behind  which  I 
was  kneeling.  An  instant  after,  a  dark  figure,  relieved 
against  the  comparatively  lighter  sky,  is  passing  it.  His 
limbs  nearly  touch  me. 

One  leap,  like  that  of  a  wild-cat,  has  fastened  me 
upon  him. 

Fortunately  my  left  hand  has  clutched  him  by  the 


224  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

throat.  He  struggles  desperately,  and  attempts  to 
shout.  My  knife  was,  however,  ready. 

In  less  than  half  a  minute,  all  was  over. 

When  I  re-climbed  the  knoll,  I  found  the  boys  already 
stirring.  The  wailing  cry  of  Clo-ke-ta  had  aroused 
Arnold,  who,  finding  me  absent,  had  awakened  the 
rest.  Jennings  could  tell  them  nothing  of  my  absence. 
Brighton  Bill  had  proposed  to  Harry  a  search  for  me. 
The  latter,  however,  saw  that  until  the  morning  had 
broken,  any  such  search  must  be  worse  than  useless. 

"  And  here  are  Mose,  by  Heaven ! "  ejaculated 
Jennings. 

He  rounded  off  his  sentence  with  a  fearful  oath  of 
delight,  as  by  the  light  of  the  camp-fire,  which  had  been 
heaped  with  fresh  brush,  he  was  the  first  to  recognize 
me.  Without  a  word,  I  was  trampling  out  the  flame, 
in  which  attempt  I  was  assisted  by  Bill,  who  had  a  pro 
found  faith  in  my  sagacity,  and  would,  I  firmly  believe, 
have  lent  me  a  hand  in  cutting  Harry  Arnold's  throat, 
had  I  thought  proper  to  do  so.  When  the  affair  had 
been  accomplished,  he  would  probably  have  inquired 
my  reason  for  such  a  bloody  proceeding,  but  not  until 
then. 

"  What  on  airth  !  are  yer  about  ? "  roared  Stanaf ord. 
"  Can't  yer  leave  the  fire  alone  ? " 

"  Mose  must  have  a  sufficient  reason,"  said  Arnold. 
"Wait  'till  he  tells  it  to  you." 

"  Hingins  ! "  was  Bill's  suggestive  explanation. 

"  Wall !  arn't  we  enough  for  'em  ? " 

"  Scarcely !  "  I  answered.  Then  I  added,  as  I  tram 
pled  out  the  last  burning  embers  with  my  heel,  "  they 
are  all  around  us." 

"  How  many  ?  "  inquired  Arnold. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  225 

"  I  cannot  tell,  jet"  was  my  reply,  given  with  what, 
could  it  have  been  seen  by  him,  was  a  grim  smile. 
"  Probably,  some  two  hundred  and  fifty." 

"  Yer  can't  mean  it !  "  exclaimed  Jennings. 

"  Boys ! "  I  then  said,  "  we  are  in  the  tightest  fix  I 
have  yet  been  in.  They  are  Bannocks,  and  the  Ban 
nocks  will  fight,  as  you  all  know." 

"  How  do  you  know  what  they  are  ? "  inquired 
Arnold. 

A  flush  stole  over  my  face  as  I  delayed  to  answer. 
Had  there  been  sufficient  light  to  have  detected  it,  I 
might  have  been  exposed  to  an  awkward  cross-question 
ing.  However,  I  replied : 

"  By  taking  one  of  their  scalps." 

This  was  a  possible  reason,  although  by  no  means 
a  probable  one,  save  in  the  case  of  an  old  Indian  fighter. 
Nevertheless,  it  answered  the  purpose,  for  the  announce 
ment  that  we  were,  as  it  turned  out  afterwards,  actually 
besieged  by  a  large  body  of  red  warriors,  was  by  no 
means  adapted  to  raise  the  spirits  of  the  men  who  were 
listening.  Indeed,  those  of  many  of  them  dropped  to 
zero. 

Little  more  of  the  ordinary  talk  in  a  miner's  camp  was 
likely  to  pass  between  us,  during  the  remainder  of  the 
night.  It  would  not,  however,  be  long  for  us  to  wait 
until  the  morning  light  verified  my  words.  None  of  us 
cared  about  attempting  again  to  sleep.  We  watched 
impatiently  until  the  day  broke.  Then  it  was  dis 
covered  that  I  had  greatly  under-estimated  the  number 
of  the  enemy.  Although  unable  to  reckon  them,  pre 
cisely,  there  were  certainly  more  than  five  hundred  red 
skins  waiting  to  raise  our  hair. 

When  we  realized  our  position,  we  saw  that  the  con- 
10* 


226  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

test  against  such  odds  must  be  almost  a  hopeless  one. 
We  consequently  determined  upon  selling  our  lives  as 
dearly  as  possible. 

The  first  day  passed  in  a  succession  of  charges  upon 
the  knoll  by  the  red  rascals,  broken  by  their  repulse, 
and  intervals  of  rest  for  us,  following  each  separate 
attack.  Our  position  was,  by  good  luck,  a  remarkably 
strong  one,  and  in  these  intervals  we  succeeded  in 
greatly  strengthening  it.  With  our  shovels  and  picks 
we  tore  up  huge 'fragments  of  rock,  with  which  we 
built  ourselves  breastworks,  and  excavated  trenches  for 
our  own  security,  from  which  we  could  pick  off  the 
advancing  Bannocks,  whenever  they  indulged  them 
selves  in  a  charge. 

At  first,  it  somewhat  puzzled  me  how  Clo-ke-ta  had 
learned  of  iny  being  here.  But  my  name,  as  wrell  as 
those  of  Arnold  and  Brighton  Bill,  had  become  tolera 
bly  well-known  among  the  Indians  in  the  section  of 
country  around  Susanville,  and  I  at  last  concluded  that 
it  was  known  that  all  three  of  us  were  with  the  party. 
If  so,  the  reason  for  these  comparatively  dilatory  attacks 
was  obvious.  A  prudent  fear  of  exposing  themselves  to 
our  unerring  aim,  kept  them  from  resolutely  putting  an 
end  to  the  matter. 

During  the  whole  of  the  ensuing  night,  a  sharp  look 
out  was  kept  up.  None  of  our  guards,  who  were  regu 
larly  relieved  at  stated  intervals,  slept  as  Jennings  had 
done  on  the  preceding  one. 

Early  on  the  following  day,  their  Mahalas,  or  squaws, 
began  to  clear  off  a  piece  of  ground  beyond  the  range 
of  our  rifles.  It  was  in  vain,  I  attempted  to  recognize 
the  form  of  Clo-ke-ta  among  them.  Possibly  she  did 
not  share  their  labors,  although  it  is  more  than  probable 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  227 

the  distance  prevented  my  sight  from  distinguishing  her. 
While  I  was  watching  this  operation,  interesting  not 
only  to  me  but  the  rest  of  us,  from  its  too  evident  in 
tention,  Brighton  Bill  said : 

"  Ila  blamed  pretty  sight,  hain't  hit,  Mose  ? " 

"  You  know  what  it's  for,  then  ? "  I  could  not  help 
asking  him. 

"  Ilin  course  Hi  do.  Il'it's  ha  kind  hof  theayter 
where  the  blamed  Ilingins  mean  to  torture  h'us." 

"  If  they  catch  us,  Bill !  " 

"  They  will  have  1ms,  sooner  h'or  later,  that's  sartain." 

"  They  had  me  once,  Bill.  But  while  I  have  a  kiiife, 
they  shall  never  have  me  again." 

"Ili'm  blowed,  Mose,  hif  you  hare'nt  right.  Ili'll 
tell  'Ank,  hand  'e  and  Hi  will  take  care  we're  not 
roasted  halive,  too." 

"  You  will  be  doing  wisely." 

After  the  Mahalas  had  picked  the  spot  which  had 
been  selected  as  clear  of  sage-brush  and  rocks,  as  the 
back  of  a  child's  hand,  they  reared  their  rude  and  dis 
gusting  banners  around  it.  Their  design  was  perfectly 
clear.  They  intended  to  stairve  us  out  and  take  us  pris 
oners.  While  we  were  discussing  the  probabilities  of 
this,  however,  one  of  the  Bannocks  approached  a  little 
too  near.  It  was  a  somewhat  long  shot,  yet  Arnold  suc 
ceeded  in  dropping  him.  This  excited  the  rest  to  fury, 
and  they  charged  upon  us  with  such  a  roar  of  whoops 
and  yells,  as  seemed  to  be  a  perfect  Pandemonium. 
Never  have  I,  before  or  since,  listened  to  such  a  devil's 
Babel.  We  shot  two  of  them  during  the  attack,  which 
was  repeated,  again  and  again,  during  the  remainder  of 
the  day.  Its  result  occasionally  varied.  But  on  each 
attack  they  paid  for  it  in  something  the  same  ratio. 


228  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

On  this  afternoon  they  received  reinforcements,  and 
on  the  next  morning  their  numbers  again  heavily  in 
creased.  Arnold,  indeed,  calculated  that  there  must, 
on  the  third  morning,  have  been  more  than  twelve  hun 
dred  red-skins  surrounding  us. 

Some  discussion  had  on  the  second  day  taken  place 
as  to  the  feasibility  of  our  cutting  our  way  through 
them.  This  large  increase  in  their  force  had,  however, 
rendered  such  an  attempt  a  matter  of  mere  insanity. 
The  whole  of  that  day,  they  kept  making  dashes  at  us. 
Up  to  this,  nevertheless,  they  had  inflicted  no  damage 
upon  our  party.  One  result  of  their  tactics,  had,  how 
ever,  caused  us  serious  uneasiness.  Our  ammunition  was 
wasting  gradually  away.  Moreover,  our  stock  of  pro 
visions  was  running  very  low.  It  was  clear,  if  things 
continued  as  they  now  were,  we  should  not  only  find 
our  guns  useless,  but  might,  if  the  Bannocks  waited 
long  enough,  be  unable  to  raise  a  finger  in  self-defence. 

That  night,  it  was  evident  to  the  most  thick-headed 
amongst  us,  that  it  would  be  impossible  fo/  us  to  hold 
out  much  longer. 

Things  were  looking  desperate.  We  had  already 
been  placed  upon  short  allowance  for  our  stomachs.  It 
had  now  become  necessary  to  place  some  restriction  upon 
our  frequency  of  firing  at  the  red  devils.  At  the  coun 
cil  in  which  we  discussed ,our  situation,  two  of  us,  named 
Gardiner  and  Jasper,  volunteered  to  attempt  passing  the 
Indian  lines  during  the  jiight.  If  they  were  unable  to 
procure  us  relief,  they  would  at  any  rate  perish  in  the 
attempt  to  do  so. 

It  was  a  gallant  offer.  But  they  were  like  the  rest  of 
us,  inen  of  pluck.  Had  we  not  been  so,  necessity  would 
have  produced  it.  Nothing  gives  a  man  so  much  bra 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  229 

very,  as  the  knowledge  that  his  own  con  rage  alone  keeps 
death  at  bay  for  a  day  or  two  longer.  Their  resolution 
was  certainly  increased  by  this  knowledge. 

Suffice  it,  this  offer  was  accepted. 

About  eleven  o'clock  on  that  night,  they  stripped 
themselves  perfectly  naked,  and,  greasing  their  bodies 
with  a  portion  of  the  bacon-fat  which  chanced  to  be  left, 
prepared  for  their  task.  The  reason  for  doing  this  last, 
was,  in  order  to  avoid  their  clothes  catching  on  or  being 
entangled  by  the  brush,  as  well  as  to  afford  a  chance  of 
their  escaping  the  grasp  of  the  red  devils,  should  their 
progress  alarm  them. 

They  were  each  armed  with  a  sheath-knife.  If  caught, 
they  had  determined  upon  fighting  as  long  as  they  had 
any  life  left  to  fight  with.  Neither  of  them  would  be 
taken  captive.  My  experience,  while  in  the  hands  of 
the  Pah-utes,  had  been  detailed  to  them  on  the  preced 
ing  night,  by  Brighton  Bill,  in  a  full  audience  of  the 
rest  of  our  party.  Nor  did  he  narrate  it,  with  mitigat 
ing  circumstances.  As  may  be  very  readily  supposed, 
this  had  been  by  no  means  a  highly  consolatory  recital. 

It  was,  therefore,  with  a  prayer  for  their  safety  from 
our  lips,  and  with  small  hope  of  it  in  their  own  thoughts, 
that  they  left  us. 

The  words  in  which  our  farewell  had  been  uttered, 
seemed  like  bidding  a  last "  good-bye"  to  actual  brothers. 
Darkness  had  fallen  heavily  around  us.  We  were  un 
able  to  pierce  the  dense  gloom  with  our  eyes,  and  could 
see  nothing.  What  was  left  to  us  but  to  wait  and  hope? 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

A  GOOD  SHOT — THE  WHITE  HORSE — APPROACHING  HELP — ONLY 
A  FLEA-BITE — A  SHOUT  OF  JOY — RAISING  THE  SIEGE— AN 
INDIAN  PANIC — THE  PURSUIT — RECOVERING  MY  SENSES— FOR 
THE  LAST  TIME — A  BEAD  AND  NO  POWDER — BARE  FEET  AND 
THE  SHARP  "SHALE" — HEROIC  SELF-SACRIFICE— A  RAPID 
AND  DASHING  RESCUE. 

THE  hour  of  suspense  which  followed  their  having 
left  the  camp,  was  terrible.  Every  moment  of  it  passed 
so  slowly,  that  it  appeared  to  be  winged  with  lead. 
Each  instant  we  were  expecting  to  hear  the  crack  of 
fire-arms,  or  the  sound  of  a  fierce  struggle — not  for  life, 
but  death.  As  the  minutes  passed  slowly  away,  at  length 
we  began  to  realize  the  fact  that  they  might  have  suc 
ceeded  in  passing  undetected  through  the  midst  of  the 
slumbering  Indians.  This  belief  gradually  ripened  into 
a  positive  certainty. 

Brighton  Bill  was  the  first  of  us  who  found  sufficient 
hardihood  to  give  voice  to  this.  Bringing  down  his 
hand  with  a  ringing  slap  upon  his  thigh,  lie  blurted  out : 

"  May  IFi  be  blamed,  hif  pluck  don't  pay  haf  ter  h'all. 
The  boys  hare  safe." 

"  I'll  bet  they  are,"  said  Stanaford  with  a  round  oath. 
"  The  red  skunks  haven't  nabbed  'em." 

And  so,  that  night,  for  the  first  time  in  three  days,  I 
was  able  to  get  some  few  hours  of  slumber,  and  woke 
with  something  akin  to  hope  stirring  in  my  bosom. 

This  day  the  Indians  conducted  themselves  much  as 
they  had  before  done.  We,  however,  were  more  prudent, 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  231 

and  wasted  no  more  ammunition  save  when  we  were  sure 
of  one  of  them.  They,  also,  when  they  saw  this,  grew 
more  cautious.  Possibly,  they  were  reasoning  on  our 
condition  from  the  same  stand-point  we  did  ourselves. 
Seeing  we  wasted  no  more  powder,  they  were  probably 
reckoning  that  it  was  getting  smaller  in  quantity,  and 
thought  it  useless  to  run  any  more  risk,  until  we  were 
starved  into  making  a  dash  for  the  open. 

About  the  middle  of  the  day,  however,  they  began  to 
tire  of  waiting. 

A  party  of  them  would  ride  from  their  camp,  and  en 
deavor,  by  insulting  gestures  and  exclamations  of  deri 
sion,  to  induce  us  to  come  out.  This  was  always  out  of 
rifle-range.  At  length  one  of  them,  more  daring  than 
the  rest,  approached  us  within  a  hundred  yards,  and  re 
peated  their  taunts.  Stanaford,  who  was  near  me,  said  : 

"  I'll  pick  that  red  devil  off,  anyhow." 

No  sooner  had  he  said  this,  than  he  dropped  his  cheek 
to  his  rifle,  and  in  another  moment  the  Bannock  fell 
from  his  horse.  Scarcely  had  he  seen  the  Indian  tum 
ble,  than,  dropping  his  gun,  he  leapt  out  of  the  trench, 
in  whose  cover  he  was  lying,  singing  out  as  he  did  so : 

"  I'll  have  his  darned  hair." 

Jennings  and  the  rest  of  us  shouted  for  him  to 
come  back.  This  was  of  no  use.  He  had  reached  the 
dead  Indian  and  scalped  him,  before  the  other  Ban 
nocks  realized  what  he  was  doing. 

One  of  them,  who  was  mounted  on  a  beautiful  white 
horse,  and  whom  we  had  noticed  on  the  preceding  day, 
with  a  fancy  that  he  must  be  some  prominent  chief, 
rushed  towards  Stanaford.  Dropping  on  my  knee,  I 
was  taking  dead  aim,  when  Jennings  sang  out : 

"  Hold  on !     Let  me  have  a  shot  at  him." 


232  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  Don't  yon  be  ha  blamed  fool !  "  roared  out  Brighton 
Bill.  "  H'if  the  Cap  don't  'it  'im,  you  can  take  my 
wig."  Then' he  added,  "  D'idn't  Hi  say  so  f  " 

The  last  question  was  caused  by  the  chief's  falling 
backward  and  dropping  to  the  ground,  while  his  horse 
made  straight  for  our  camp.  Like  Stanaford,  I  was 
bound  to  take  his  scalp,  and  ran  to  get  it.  This  was, 
nevertheless,  close  work.  We  had  been  right  in  imag 
ining  the  fallen  brave  to  be  a  chief.  Almost  as  soon 
as  he  had  dropped,  and  I  was  in  clear  view,  some  dozen 
or  more  of  the  red-skins  made  a  rush  for  me. 

Had  they  been  a  moment  speedier,  I  should  have  ex 
changed  my  own  hair  for  that  I  had  taken. 

The  loss  of  their  chief  seemed  to  have  excited  them 
almost  to  madness.  Every  few  minutes  they  would 
dash  at  us,  shaking  their  clinched  hands,  brandishing 
their  rifles,  and  yelling  out  taunts,  which  we  were  una 
ble  to  comprehend,  save  from  the  beastly  gestures  with 
which  they  were  accompanied.  Their  latter  experience 
of  our  skill  as  marksmen,  nevertheless,  prevented  them 
from  getting  within  range  of  our  guns. 

The  afternoon  was  rapidly  passing  away,  when  Arnold 
called  my  attention  to  some  dust  in  the  east.  It  was 
moving  rapidly  down  the  side  of  a  small  hill. 

"  White  help  ! "  he  curtly  said. 

"  Please  Heaven  !  it  may  be,  Hank  !  "  I  answered,  as 
I  watched  the  approaching  cloud  intently. 

In  a  few  moments,  we  were  able  to  detect  the  forms 
of  some  fourteen  horsemen  coming  straight  toward  us, 
at  a  rapid  rate. 

"  They  are  a  mere  flea-bite  for  die  red  devils,"  he  ex 
claimed,  querulously.  "  However,  we  may  make  a  bet 
ter  show,  with  them  to  help  us." 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  233 

The  whole  of  onr  companions  were  now  watching  them, 
as  also  were  the  Indians,  who  commenced  a  movement, 
from  our  right  and  left,  towards  the  approaching  party. 

"  We  must  go  to  their  assistance,"  I  said  to  Harry. 

"  H'in  course  we  must,"  cried  Brighton  Bill,  making 
a  step  to  the  spot  where  our  horses  were. 

"  See ! "  cried  Arnold,  with  a  shout  of  irrepressible 
joy,  "  the  red  skunks  are  trapped." 

When  he  uttered  this,  he  pointed  to  one  side  of  the 
knoll.  At  the  same  instant,  Stanaford  grasped  my 
shoulder  and  called  my  attention  to  the  other.  Our  at 
tention  had  hitherto  been  so  engrosed  by  the  approach 
of  this  party,  that  we  had  not  detected  the  advance  upon 
either  side,  of  two  much  larger  bodies.  These  reckoned, 
as  we  subsequently  learned,  more  than  two  hundred 
each.  Gardner  and  Jasper  had  done  their  work  well, 
and  deserved  all  gratitude  for  the  courage  and  speed 
with  which  they  had  carried  through  the  work  they  had 
entered  upon. 

Moreover,  the  attention  of  the  Bannocks  had  been 
engrossed  with  the  approach  of  that  party  of  our  fellow- 
countrymen  which  I  had,  the  very  moment  before,  in 
company  with  Harry  Arnold,  noticed. 

When  they  heard  the  rolling  thunder  of  our  shout  of 
joy,  and  knew  that  we  were  mounting  our  horses,  they 
gazed  round  upon  either  side.  In  an  instant,  they  be 
came  aware  of  the  manner  in  which  they  had  been 
trapped.  There  was  a  moment  of  hurried  consultation. 
After  this,  they  seemed  to  be  stricken  with  perfect  dis 
may.  The  presence  of  our  friends  had  smitten  them 
with  a  thorough  panic.  A  telling  volley  had  been 
poured  in  upon  their  shrinking  figures,  when  we  charged 
upon  them. 


234  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

It  was  with  the  yell  of  a  band  of  tigers. 

Shouting,  clubbing,  striking,  and  stabbing,  we  broke  in, 
upon  all  we  came  across. 

For  the  time,  we  were  in  a  complete  delirium  of  sav 
age  rage.  So  much  so,  indeed,  that  no  incident  of  the 
struggle  can  be  in  any  way  recalled  by  me,  for  the  next 
two  hours. 

At  the  close  of  these,  my  recollection  had  come  back. 
I  was  far  to  the  north  of  our  camping-ground.  Koon 
was  waning  into  evening.  The  blue  sky  of  the  morn 
ing  was  seamed  and  blurred  with  rushing  cloud.  The 
horse  I  was  mounted  on  was  urged  by  me,  in  a  head 
long  chase,  after  two  flying  figures.  In  the  commenc 
ing  shadow  of  the  evening,  I  was  enabled  to  see  that 
they  were  Indians. 

Did  I  not  recognize  one  of  them  ? 

What  if  I  did  do  so  ?  Was  I  not  maddened  with  the 
long  siege  I  had  endured  ?  Was  I  not  wild  from  my 
lengthy  imprisonment  on  the  mound,  and  eager  upon 
the  work  of  death  ?  Suddenly,  one  of  their  horses  stum 
bled  and  fell.  Its  rider  was  thrown  under  the  body  of 
the  fallen  animal.  With  a  wild  scream  of  delight,  I 
urged  my  own  steed  up  to  them. 

When  I  did  so,  the  other  Indian  had  dismounted,  and 
was  standing  between  me  and  the  fallen  red-skin,  in  a 
cjueenly  and  defiant  posture. 

It  was  a  Mahala. 

"  The  white  chief  has  killed  the  husband  of  Clo-ke- 
ta.  Let  him  now,  if  he  wills  it,  take  the  life  of  her 
father." 

Par-a-wau  was  stretched  upon  the  dry  earth,  crushed 
under  the  motionless  body  of  the  animal  he  had  been 
riding. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  235 

For  a  moment,  I  gazed  upon  the  two.  My  brain 
seemed  to  whirl  in  a  wild  dance,  as  I  did  this.  Then  it 
was  stilled,  and,  without  a  word  of  reply,  I  leapt  from 
the  back  of  my  horse.  With  some  little  difficulty  I  ex 
tracted  the  Cheyenne  chief  from  beneath  the  dead  body 
of  the  animal  he  had  been  mounted  upon.  The  gallant 
little  beast  had  been  stricken,  earlier,  by  one  of  our  balls. 
It  had  passed  through  its  hind  quarter.  Yet,  in  spite 
of  the  loss  of  blood  and  the  weakness  gradually  growing 
on  it  from  this,  it  had  carried  the  Cheyenne  thus  far. 

Although  bruised  severely  by  the  fall,  when  I  raised 
him,  Par-a-wau  was  able  to  stand  erect. 

Neither  of  us  spoke. 

He,  very  evidently,  supposed  that  it  was  my  intention 
to  make  him  a  prisoner.  In  all  probability,  he  had  too 
much  Indian  pride  to  make  any  entreaty.  Very  possibly, 
he  believed  white  blood  might  run  in  as  hard  veins 
as  that  of  the  red-skin.  I  led  my  own  horse  toward 
him. 

"  Will  Par-a-wau  mount  the  horse  of  his  brother  ? " 

Without  a  word  of  answer,  he  obeyed  me.  Then,  I 
raised  his  rifle,  which  was  still  upon  the  ground,  and 
placed  it  in  his  hands. 

After  this,  I  turned  to  the  Mahala.  She  had  been 
standing  motionless,  watching  every  movement  which  I 
had  made.  Touching  her  widowed  brow  with  my 
parched  lips,  dry  and  smeared  as  they  were  with  the 
grime  of  battle,  I  lifted  her  into  the  saddle  of  her  pony, 
which  had  been  standing  near  us,  saying : 

"  Clo-ke-ta  will  sometimes  think  of  the  brother  who 
has  never  forgotten  her ! " 

As  I  quitted  her  side,  I  heard  the  same  cry  of  anguish, 
which  had  been  uttered  by  her,  when  I  refused  to  obey 


236  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

her  counsel  and  fly  from  the  men  with  whom  my  lot  was 
at  the  moment  cast.  My  heart  throbbed  fiercely,  yet  I 
would  not  turn  to  her.  Haply,  she  was  thinking  of  the 
husband  whom  I  had  slain — perchance,  she  may  mo 
mentarily  have  recalled  the  long-quelled  dream  of  her 
youth.  What  was  it  to  me  what  she  was  thinking  of  ? 
Resolutely,  I  commenced  my  return. 

In  a  few  seconds  after,  I  heard  the  tramp  of  the  horse 
which  had  borne  me,  as  well  as  that  upon  which  I  had 
placed  Clo-ke-ta,  ringing  upon  the  plain  behind  me. 
Par-a-wau  had  breathed  a  few  words  to  his  daughter,  as 
she  passed  from  my  hearing,  in  their  own  tongue.  It 
almost  seemed  to  me,  as  though  a  portion  of  my  life  had 
been  torn  from  me. 

Treading  rapidly  along  the  plain,  I  was  buried  in  the 
mingled  gloom  of  the  present  and  the  past. 

Yes  !  This  was  the  end.  My  hand  had  widowed  the 
woman,  for  whom  I  had  once  been  so  sorely  tempted  to 
forswear  civilization. 

In  spite  of  the  excitement  of  the  last  few  hours,  my 
thoughts  were  for  the  moment  with  the  past,  when  they 
were  suddenly  brought  back  by  a  voice,  whose  tones  I 
had  recently  become  more  than  well  acquainted  with. 
They  were  characterized  by  a  somewhat  coarse  and  inso 
lent  surprise. 

"  Wall !  I  swar,  if  this  don't  beat  all.  It's  Buck 
skin  Mose." 

This  exclamation  was  followed  by  the  heartier  and 
more  energetic  utterance  of  Brighton  Bill. 

"  Hi'm  blamed,  Cap,  hif  you  weren't  lucky ;  we  'adn't 
no  more  powder." 

"  Whar's  yer  horse  ? " 

"  May  Hi  be  blamed  hif  h'it  hain't  nabbed  by  them 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  237 

thieving  Ilingins.  Nare'  a  matter,  Mose ;  'ang  me  hif  Hi 
don't  get  h'it  back  for  you." 

Bill's  horse  was  already  plunging  by  me,  when  my 
grasp  was  on  its  bridle. 

"  You  won't,  Bill ! " 

"  What  d'  you  mean  ? " 

"What  I  say!" 

Jennings,  the  man  who  had  been  with  Bill  when  the 
two  had  caught  sight  of  me,  was  already  some  ten  yards 
from  the  place  where  I  was  standing. 

"Comeback!" 

Glancing  over  his  shoulder  at  me,  he  saw  me  drawing 
a  bead  upon  him.  Not  knowing  I  also  was  out  of  pow 
der  as  well  as  himself,  he  thought  it  best  to  pull  in  and 
return,  swearing  at  what  he  considered  my  stupidity. 
The  opinion  of  Brighton  Bill  was,  however,  of  greater 
importance  in  my  estimation.  This,  the  more  especially, 
when  I  found  out  he  evidently  had  settled  my  conduct 
as  an  undoubted  example  of  temporary  insanity.  At 
any  rate,  I  saw  him,  when  he  fancied  my  glance  was 
turned  away,  looking  at  Jennings,  and  touching  his  fore 
head  in  a  very  significant  manner. 

"  What  are  you  thinking  of,  Bill  ? "  I  asked  him,  sud 
denly. 

"Nothing,  Cap !  Hi'll  be  blamed  hif  Hi  am.  H'only 
hit's  queer." 

And  so,  I  can  scarcely  doubt,  it  seemed  to  him.  Re 
turning  to  the  carnp  on  foot,  I  neither  explained  in 
what  way  I  had  lost  my  horse — whether  it  had  been  shot, 
stolen,  or  run  away.  Nor  did  I  in  any  way  allude  to 
my  share  in  the  battle.  My  questions  were,  however, 
numerous  enough  during  our  return.  The  Bannocks 
had,  indeed,  been  completely  routed.  Saving  Colonel 


238  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Connor's  defeat  of  the  Indians  on  Bear  River,  it  was 
the  most  terrible  defeat  the  red-skins  had  met  with, 
since  I  had  taken  up  my  residence  in  this  portion  of  the 
country.  As  I  afterwards  learned,  some  four  hundred 
of  them  had  been  slain,  and  almost  as  large  a  number 
of  horses  had  been  captured. 

By  the  bye,  I  may  mention  that  the  white  animal 
previously  mentioned,  subsequently  was  known  as  one 
of  the  fleetest  race-horses  in  all  Idaho. 

On  our  way  back  to  Boice  City,  the  party  who  had 
come  to  our  rescue  related  to  us  the  adventures  and 
sufferings  of  the  two  brave  fellows  who  had  succeeded 
in  carrying  them  intelligence  of  our  position. 

After  quitting  the  knoll  upon  which  we  were  besieged 
they  had  commenced  their  stealthy  advance  through 
the  Indian  lines,  crawling  flatly  upon  the  earth,  like  a 
serpent.  Each  of  them  had  taken  a  different  direction. 
Frequently  they  passed  close  to  a  slumbering  Indian. 
But  for  the  grave  necessity  which  imposed  every  pre 
caution  upon  him  to  avoid  detection,  Gardner  said 
more  than  once,  he  was  tempted  to  knife  some  of  the 
red  devils,  who  had  reduced  him  and  the  rest  of  us  to 
so  sore  a  strait.  However,  feeling  that  if  he  did  so 
the  struggle  he  might  possibly  cause  would  rouse  the 
camp,  he  had  wisely  enough  refrained  from  doing  so. 

After  they  had  passed  their  enemies  and  were  some 
mile  or  more  beyond  them,  each  rose  to  his  feet. 

Jasper  had  followed  a  small  creek  for  some  distance, 
and  then  struck  across  the  rock  and  shale  of  the  moun 
tains  until  he  reached  Boice  City.  His  body  was 
scratched  and  cut  by  the  brush  he  had  stricken  against 
in  the  commencement  of  the  route,  while  the  flesh  had 
been  actually  torn  from  his  feet  by  the  jagged  shale  he 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  239 

had  passed  over.  "When  he  arrived  in.  the  cit}T,  those 
who  first  saw  him  fancied  he  had  jnst  made  his  escape 
from  the  Indians,  who  had  been  amusing  themselves  by 
torturing  him.  Gardner  had  struck  in  a  more  northerly 
direction  for  Idaho  City.  His  way  had  been  nearly  as 
bad,  and  he  was  almost  dead  when  he  arrived  there. 
It  should  be  mentioned  that  the  former  of  these  two 
unrecorded  heroes  died  within  a  short  time,  after  reach 
ing  Boice  City.  He  had,  voluntarily,  as  Gardner  had 
also  clone,  exposed  himself  to  the  almost  sure  risk  of 
death,  on  behalf  of  his  companions.  Peace  be  with  the 
gallant  fellow,  in  that  long  sleep,  for  which  we  shed 
tears  of  blood ! 

No  sooner  had  his  information  been  given  than  Jake 
Jordan  leapt  upon  his  horse,  and  stopping  at  every 
house,  called  for  volunteers.  Every  horse  was  placed 
in  requisition.  They  were  even  taken  from  the  teams 
that  were  standing  in  the  main  street,  and  mounted  by 
those  who  were  eager  to  join  the  expedition,  whether 
their  owners  or  not. 

A  well-equipped  party  soon  after  came  in  from  Idaho 
City,  and  joined  them. 

When  everything  was  in  readiness,  and  not  a  moment 
had  been  lost  by  them,  they  placed  themselves  under 
the  command  of  Jordan,  and  took  the  road.  Nor  did 
they  slacken  rein,  even  for  an  instant,  until  they  had  so 
bravely  opened  the  doors  of  the  trap  into  which  we  had 
unfortunately  fallen.  It  was  one  of  the  most  rapid  and 
dashing  rescues  I  ever  remember  in  the  West,  and  does 
infinite  credit  to  him  who  carried  it  through,  in  every 
particular,  with  such  complete  success. 


CHAPTEE  XVII. 

THE  RESPECTABLE  PILE  AND  AN  IDLE  WINTER— ONLY  ONE 
STREET — GAMBLING  AND  DRINKING — A  WESTERN  COMMUNIST 
— "KEERDS"— A  STICKY  WRIST— EIGHT  HUNDRED  PER  CENT 
— NORTH  OR  SOUTH— A  BLOW  FOR  THE  OLD  FLAG — NECK 
OR  NOTHING— A  COMPULSORY  COLD  BATH — NOT  VERY  MUCH 
DAMAGED— UNABLE  TO  GET  COMPENSATION. 

AFTER  a  somewhat  brief  rest,  Harry  Arnold,  with 
Bill  and  myself,  determined  upon  returning  to  Honey 
Lake  Valley.  Nothing  worthy  of  notice  occurred  until 
we  reached  Susanville,  except  that  we  travelled  by 
night,  and  lay  in  camp  during  the  day,  to  avoid  the 
chance  of  discovery  by  any  scouting  party  of  Indians. 

It  was  now  late  in  the  year,  and  as,  after  hearing  the 
danger  I  had  run,  my  wife  was  unwilling  that  I  should 
so  soon  leave  her  again,  we  determined,  with  the  balance 
of  the  Rangers  whom  we  had  left  on  the  Humboldt,  to 
pass  this  winter  in  comparative  rest.  That  is  to  say, 
we  would  hunt  deer  for  the  market  in  Virginia  City, 
and  set  a  few  traps. 

The  probability  is  that  we  arrived  at  this  conclusion, 
from  the  fact  that  we  had  all  of  us  more  or  less  made 
money  during  the  past  year.  Those  of  us  who  had  been 
mining  nearer  home  had  done  sufficiently  well ;  while,  in 
addition  to  what  the  three  of  us  had  been  paid  as  guides 
by  Colonel  Connor,  we  had  gathered  a  very  reasonable 
pile  of  gold-dust  while  in  the  neighborhood  of  Idaho. 
Consequently,  we  were  all  of  us  disposed  to  enjoy  the 


BtTCKSKlN  MOSE.  241 

proceeds  of  our  toil,  and  do  as  little  hard  work  as  pos 
sible. 

My  first  business  was,  of  course,  to  see  to  the  comfort 
of  the  little  woman  whom  I  had  been  again  absent  from, 
for  so  many  months. 

Indeed,  there  was  some  surprise  on  the  part  of  my 
friends  to  find  me  now  and  then  declining,  not  only  to 
join  their  hunting  expeditions,  but  in  addition  some 
times  refusing  to  form  one  in  their  raids  upon  the  Faro 
and  Monte  banks  which  were  run  in  various  saloons,  one 
of  the  most  notorious  being  that  in  Burkett's  Saloon, 
kept  going  by  Heap  and  Hale,  the  John  Chamberlains 
of  Susanville.  It  will,  probably,  not  astonish  my  readers 
to  hear  that  these  raids  were  by  no  means  altogether 
flattering  in  their  results  to  the  skill  and  good  fortune  of 
the  Rangers. 

There  is  one  anecdote  which  will  not  prove  unam us 
ing.  It  is,  indeed,  so  characteristic  of  the  inner  life  of 
the  place,  as  well  as  of  the  general  inner  life  of  the 
mining  districts,  that  I  cannot  refrain  from  recounting  it. 

Up  to  the  present  time,  I  have  neglected  to  describe 
Susanville.  It  was  by  no  means  a  large  city,  according 
to  the  Eastern  notion  of  what  a  city  should  be.  Nor, 
possibly,  did  it  enjoy  an  over  and  above  large  share  of 
civilized  respectability. 

A  single  street  contained  the  whole  of  its  actual  busi 
ness  population.  And  of  what  was  this  whole  visible 
street  composed  ?  Almost  entirely  of  frame  buildings 
for  the  retail  of  ardent  spirits ;  in  other  words,  of  drink- 
ing-saloons.  "  Good  Old  Bourbon,"  "  The  Best  Cognac," 
"  Capital  Rye,"  and  other  inviting  appellations,  of  the 
same  class,  were  the  only  evident  appeals  to  those  who 
chanced  to  pass  through  it,  for  their  custom.  Occasion- 
11 


242  v  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

ally,  indeed,  you  might  find  a  liquor-store  which  in 
a  measure  protected  a  different  class  of  business.  In. 
the  front  of  one,  you  might  find  piles  of  ready-made 
clothing.  Within  another  were  all  the  appliances  for 
three-card  Monte  or  Faro.  Here,  were  cigars  and  to 
bacco.  This  one,  also,  did  duty  as  a  corner-grocery. 

These  places  were  generally  left  to  their  own  care, 
from  the  hour  at  which  they  were  closed  until  the  fol 
lowing  morning. 

The  honesty  of  frontier-life  protected  them  from 
being  broken  into. 

At  this  time  there  was  living  in  Susanville  an  aged 
settler  named  Pascal  Taylor,  but  more  commonly  known 
as  "  Old  Zac."  He  was  an  independent  sort  of  Com 
munist.  Did  he  need  chicken  for  a  pot-pie,  he  would 
appropriate  the  fowls  of  his  fellow-settlers  without  the 
slightest  scruple.  If  he  needed  a  new  pair  of  panta 
loons,  it  was  equally  indifferent  to  him  whether  he  made 
a  requisition  upon  the  piles  of  clothes  in  front  of  the 
store  of  a  dealer  of  such  articles,  or  upon  the  dwellings 
of  his  nearest  neighbors.  However,  let  me  do  him 
justice.  When  detected,  he  would  invariably  repay  the 
injured  party  in  kind,  by  appropriating  another  article 
of  the  same  sort  and  bringing  it  to  him. 

In  fact,  he  might  be  termed  a  continual  debtor  to  life, 
paying,  from  time  to  time,  by  incurring  another  debt. 
Whether  at  the  close  of  his  career  his  account  with  life 
might  be  balanced,  must,  nevertheless,  remain  a  matter 
of  considerable  doubt. 

Tom  Long  was  the  owner  of  one  of  the  drinking- 
saloons,  I  have  mentioned,  as  composing  the  line  of  street 
or  road  which  was  named  Susanville.  His  residence 
was  on  the  hill  rising  from  one  side  of  the  line  of  liquor- 


BUCKSKIN   HOSE.  243 

shanties  in  which  its  regular  inhabitants  made  money. 
One  night,  old  "  Zac  "  was  standing  beside  the  spot  where 
Tom  was  dispensing  liquor.  lie  was  »i  favorite  of 
Tom's.  For  what  reason  he  was  so,  it  would  be  impos 
sible  to  say.  But  Tom  employed  him  to  do  up  odd 
"  chores "  for  him,  and  occasionally  assisted  him  in  a 
way  which  in  the  East  might  have  been  stigmatized  as 
"  red-hot"  charity.  In  Susanville,  it  was  not  considered 
so.  Old  "  Zac "  was  a  privileged  person.  Well,  the 
truth  is,  Torn  was  tired  with  the  employment  of  the 
day.  lie  wanted  to  quit  business  and  retire  to  his  home. 
Turning  to  "  Zac,"  he  pushed  out  the  bottle  and  a  tum 
bler. 

"Take  a  drink,  Zac?" 

"  You  bet — "  responded  the  recipient  of  Tom's 
bounty.  "  I  say,"  he  continued,  lifting  the  Old  Rye  to 
his  lips,  "  here's  long  life  to  you." 

"  I  want  to  go  home." 

"  Why  in  thunder  don't  yu  go,  then  ? " 

"  Zac,  I  think  I  will,  if  you'll  'tend  business  for  me." 

"You  bet  !" 

"Thank  you,  Zac!  Here's  the  key  of  the  door. 
Mind  you  lock  it  in  about  half  an  hour,  and  open  it 
again,  to-morrow  morning."  As  Tom  concluded,  he 
took  a  fair  dose  of  Rye  himself,  to  render  his  skin  im 
pervious  to  the  night  air.  In  this  he  was  imitated  by 
old  Zac.  Then  putting  on  his  coat,  and  taking  his  hat, 
he  quitted  the  saloon  with  a  cheery  "  Good-night,  old 
boy  ! " 

Now,  "  Zac  "  had  no  intention  of  remaining  long  after 
his  friend  and  patron  had  gone.  He  had  rinsed  out 
the  two  glasses  he  and  Tom  had  just  emptied,  and  was 
on  his  way  to  the  door,  when  four  of  us  stepped  in. 


24A  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"Eh,  Zac  !  whar's  Tom?  " 

"  Gon  to  1mm." 

"Wall,  you'll  du!"  exclaimed  Butch'.  "  Jest,  shet 
the  doors." 

"  Ili'll  see  to  hit  better  than  'e  will,  by  ha  blamed 
sight !  "  said  Brighton  Bill. 

At  the  moment  he  said  this,  he  was  striding  to  the 
back-door  of  the  saloon,  which  he  very  coolly  locked 
and  put  the  huge  key  in  one  of  his  pockets.  No  sooner 
was  this  done,  than,  returning  to  the  front  entrance,  he 
performed  the  same  operation. 

Butch'  had  meanwhile  seated  himself  at  a  square 
deal  table  in  one  of  the  corners  of  the  room. 

"  Whar  are  the  keerds  ?  " 

"  Here— you  bet ! " 

Ben  Painter  produced  the  pack,  and  was  speedily, 
with  myself  and  Bill,  seated  at  the  other  three  sides  of 
the  table.  Our  gold  was  produced,  and  laid  beside  us. 
At  that  time,  as  now,  paper  money  was  an  unknown 
quantity  in  California.  Then  we  began  to  play. 

During  the  whole  afternoon,  we  had  been  drinking. 
Necessarily,  after  playing  for  some  fifteen  minutes,  we 
felt  somewhat  dry.  Butch'  possibly  felt  drier  than 
any  of  us.  At  any  rate,  he  was  the  one  who  cried  out : 

"  Bring  up  the  licker,  Zac  ! " 

The  old  fellow  brought  us  the  Rye  and  four  glasses 
on  a  tray.  "We  drank.  But  when  he  had  again  re 
moved  the  glasses  and  held  out  his  hand  for  the  four 
"  bits,"  or  twenty-five-cent  pieces,  habit  required,  his 
unprincipled  customer  produced  a  revolver  which  he 
very  deliberately  cocked  and  laid  down  upon  the  table 
beside  him. 

"D'yu  see  that?" 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  245 

"You bet— Mr.  Hasbrouck." 

"  Wall,  then !  don't  stick  out  yure  paws  for  money 
but  bring  along  the  licker  when  we  ask  for  it." 

Old  "  Zac's  "  lower  jaw  dropped  as  he  looked  in  the 
face  of  him  who  spoke.  There  was  a  general  shout  or 
rather  scream  of  laughter  from  the  three  other  card- 
players.  The  face  of  Butch'  was,  however,  as  inflexi 
ble  as  if  it  had  been  hewn  from  granite. 

"  What  du  yu  mean  ? "  was  the  question  at  length 
propounded. 

"  Exsag'ly  what  I  say.  Jest  mind  your  business,  and 
we'll  mind  ourn." 

After  this,  we  continued  playing. 

California  had,  before  this  time,  a  monopoly  of  such 
rough  and  possibly  dishonest  jests.  The  very  men  who 
would  have  scorned  implicating  themselves  in  any  busi 
ness  swindle,  saw  no  harm,  in  occasionally,  when  under 
the  influence  of  liquor,  perpetrating  a  joke  of  this  de 
scription.  When  younger,  Taylor  himself  may  have 
been  an.  accomplice  in  some  of  the  same  sort.  He 
walked  back  to  the  bar,  with  a  countenance  as  grave  as 
that  of  a  man  who  is  going  to  the  gallows. 

Speedily  another  round  of  drinks  was  ordered.  This 
was  followed  by  another  and  another. 

Occasionally  I  glanced  at  him,  and  saw  the  hard 
lines  of  his  countenance  growing  longer  and  longer. 
At  last,  about  one  o'clock,  when  we  had  been  playing 
for  some  three  hours  and  the  log  on  the  hearth  had 
burnt  down  to  scarcely  more  than  a  white  mass  of  wood, 
which  would  have  blistered  any  hand  that  touched  it 
even  while  it  threw  out  no  heat,  we  felt  the  place  grow 
ing  cold.  Old  "  Zac's  "  face  lost  its  melancholy  at  the 
moment  when  Ben  Painter  sang  out,  with  a  lusty  shiver : 


246  BUCKSKIN  MOSE. 

"  Put  another  log  on  the  fire,  Zac  !  " 

"  Wliar  am  I  to  git  one  ?  " 

"  What  d'  yer  mean  ?  " 

"  You  bet,  Mr.  Painter  !  I  hain't  got  the  key.  How  in 
thunder  am  I  to  go  fur  wood  ?  " 

The  old  fellow  was  quite  right.  How  in  thunder 
could  lie  go  to  the  wood-pile,  while  the  door  was  locked  ? 
It  was  dangerous  to  let  him  have  the  key.  He  might 
run  to  Tom  Long's,  and  inform  him  of  our  use  of  the 
contents  of  his  cellar,  without  cashing  up.  Tom  Long 
was  by  no  means  such  a  pacifically  disposed  individual 
as  his  temporary  substitute.  A  similar  thought  to  this 
evidently  suggested  itself  to  the  mind  of  Brighton  Bill. 
Rising  from  his  seat,  he  said  : 

"  Hi'll  go  with  'im,  and  may  IPi  be  blamed  hif  the 
hold  rip  bolts." 

Some  time  elapsed  before  the  fresh  log  made  its 
appearance,  and  the  door  which  Bill  had  opened  was 
once  more  locked.  The  log  was  placed  upon  the  embers 
by  old  "  Zac,"  and,  in  a  brief  time,  the  cheerful  blaze 
from  it  was  again  warming  the  chilly  temperature  of 
the  saloon. 

We  recommenced  playing.  Presently  more  drinks 
were  called  for. 

As  before,  the  old  fellow  brought  them.  This  time, 
however,  he  had  not  placed  the  glasses  upon  a  tray. 
He  brought  them  two  in  each  hand.  Leaning  across 
the  table  he  placed  the  first  two  between  Butch'  and 
me.  The  other  two  were  planted  between  Painter  and 
Brighton  Bill.  As  I  chanced  to  look  at  him,  shortly 
after,  I  saw  the  roughly  rigid  lines  of  his  mouth  actually 
curving  into  a  smile.  When  another  round  of  drinks 
were  demanded,  they  were  brought  in  the  same  fashion, 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  247 

but  placed  between  Brighton  Bill  and  Butch',  and  be 
tween  Painter  and  myself. 

Shortly  after  this,  it  struck  me  that  my  pile  of  eagles 
had  lessened  more  than  it  should  have  done. 

I  and  Bill  had,  however,  been  losing.  The  probability 
was  that  I  had  not  noticed  how  rapidly  my  money  was 
going.  Nevertheless,  when  drinks  were  again  called  for  I 
saw  old  "  Zac's  "  wrists  on  Dutch's  money  and  Painter's, 
as  the  two  glasses  were  set  down,  between  them  and  the 
remaining  two  players.  When  Long's  substitute  left 
the  table,  it  was  clear  fewer  gold  pieces  laid  between 
them  and  us  than  had  been  heaped  there  before.  I  was 
on  the  trail  and  followed  it  with  my  eyes.  When  I  had 
detected,  however,  the  means  of  which  the  shrewd  old 
vagabond  had  availed  himself  to  get  even  with  us,  I  was 
too  much  amused  to  turn  State's  evidence,  even  in  the 
row  which  ultimately  arose  between  Brighton  Bill  and 
Butch',  from  the  former  accusing  the  latter  of  conceal 
ing  his  winnings.  Bill  had  lost  about  as  much  as  Iliad. 
He  was,  nevertheless,  unaware  that  his  crony,  for  such 
next  to  myself  Butch'  Hasbrouck  was,  had  lost  equally 
in  amount,  although  more  in  proportion,  than  he  had 
himself. 

The  astute  "  Zac  "  Taylor  had  managed  to  prolong  his 
apparently  enforced  embassy  to  the  wood-pile,  until  he 
had  been  able  to  cover  the  lower  sides  of  his  wrists  with 
pitch. 

This  shrewd  dodge  had  enabled  him  to  pay  Tom  Long 
or  himself,  seven  or  eight  times  more  than  the  amount 
due  the  former  for  the  liquor  we  had  been  consuming. 
Every  time  he  stretched  across  the  table  to  place  two 
glasses  upon  it,  or  repeated  the  action  by  my  side,  his 
wrists  would  rest  upon  two  of  our  piles  of  gold  pieces. 


24:8  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

Each  time,  one  or  two  half -eagles  were  secured  by  the 
pitch  with  which  the  old  scamp  had  anointed  the  side 
•of  his  wrists  necessary  for  this  shrewd  trick.  The  con 
sequence  was,  that,  for  the  only  time  in  my  life  when 
such  an  unusual  chance  occurred,  the  whole  of  the  four 
players  were  almost  dead-broke. 

But  for  the  quantity  of  rye  we  had  all  of  us  been 
swallowing,  the  others  must  have  seen  through  this  im 
pudent  operation  as  I  had  done. 

If  so,  it  may  be  a  matter  of  question  whether  "  Zac's  " 
undeniable  popularity  would  have  saved  him  from  an 
entire  coating  of  the  pitch  he  had  so  acutely  employed. 
Relishing  the  trick,  I,  however,  held  my  peace.  Possi 
bly,  had  it  occurred  when  Hush  times  had  passed,  or  before 
they  had  begun  with  me,  I  might  have  acted  differently. 

Early  in  the  next  spring,  as  our  funds  had  almost 
touched  low- water-mark,  the  boys  held  a  council  of  war, 
and  it  was  decided  upon,  without  a  single  dissenting 
voice,  that  we  should  once  more  try  our  luck  upon  the 
Ilumboldt  River. 

Accordingly  we  started  to  the  mines,  there.  For  the 
first  time  we  met  in  this  locality  with  indifferent  success, 
or  rather  with  no  success  at  all.  We,  therefore,  decided 
upon  prospecting  at  a  further  distance,  and  repaired  to 
Austin,  Here  we  found  the  mines  less  promising  even 
than  those  we  had  just  left,  and  pushed  on  to  Belmont 
?u  the  hope  of  doing  better.  A  similar  want  of  fortune 
pursued  ns  to  this  place. 

One  evening  as  we  were  sitting  in  camp,  in  no  very 
agreeable  mood,  as  respected  the  world  and  things  in 
general,  a  bright  idea  struck  one  of  us. 

"  Look  here,  boys ! "  he  said.  "  Haven't  you  ever 
thought  of  fighting  ag'in  Seo^sh  ? " 


"  Each  time  one  or  two  half -eagles  were  secured  by  the  pitch  with 
which  the  old  scamp  had  anointed  the  sides  of  his  wrists  necessary 
for  this  shrewd  trick."-  Page  248. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  249 

"  May  Hi  be  blamed,"  exclaimed  Brighton  Bill,  "  hif 
you • 'averi't  'it  hit!  What's  the  h' use  of  prospecting 
hand  digging  where  we  don't  git  nothing.  Ili'm  game 
for  heither  side.  Let's  go  h'iu,  Cap  ! " 

"  I'm  not  exactly  game  for  either  side,  Bill !  "  was  my 
reply ;  "  but  for  the  old  Stars  and  Stripes,  I  think  I'd 
like  to  take  a  turn." 

"  So  would  I.  It  will  be  some  variety,  old  fellow,  in 
any  case,  'though  I'd  as  soon  fight  it  out  on  either  side," 
said  Painter. 

"  So  would  I.  Ye're  right,  Ben  !  "  ejaculated  Butch' 
Ilasbrouck. 

"  We'll  put  it  to  the  vote,  which  side  we  go  in  for, 
Mose,"  quietly  said  Arnold. 

Not  one  of  ns  declined  fighting.  It  was  merely  a 
question  as  to  which  side  the  fight  was  to  be  entered 
upon.  A  brief  discussion  had  the  result  of  our  taking 
Harry's  advice.  The  old  flag,  however,  carried  the  largest 
number  of  votes.  We  were  to  strike  a  blow  for  the 
Union. 

After  we  had  determined  upon  this,  the  next  thing 
which  presented  itself  to  our  consideration,  was  the  line 
of  travel  it  would  be  best  for  us  to  take.  We  had  a  fair 
stock  of  coffee,  sugar  and  jerked  meat.  This  would, 
however,  be  insufficient,  if  we  intended  to  cross  the 
continent.  We  should  have,  consequently,  to  direct  our 
march  through  a  section  in  which  game  would  be  toler 
ably  plentiful.  My  suggestion  was  that  we  should  pass 
through  the  Paranagut  country  and  the  southern  part 
of  Utah,  until  we  struck  the  Colorado  River.  From  that 
point  our  line  of  march  would  be  clear  enough. 

"  Have   yer   ever   been   through  that  part,  Mose  ? " 
asked  Butch'. 
11* 


250  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  No." 

"  Then  yer've  a  darned  good  nose  for  game,  I  will  say." 

"  And  red-skins,  too,"  said  Arnold,  "  if  we  are  to  be 
lieve  all  we  hear." 

"  Whar  thar's  game,  ye're  sure  to  find  the  skunks," 
exclaimed  Painter  sententiously. 

And  so,  the  first  part  of  our  route  was  settled  without 
much  difficulty. 

Next  morning  we  broke  up  camp,  and  after  a  few 
days  of  hard  travelling,  struck  the  south  fork  of  the 
Colorado.  Game  had  been  scarcer  than  we  had  supposed. 
However,  it  was  absolutely  necessary  that  we  should 
here  replenish  our  stock  of  provisions.  The  jerked 
meat  began  to  run  low,  and  we  had  na  more  than  a 
single  day's  rations  of  coffee  on  hand.  A  halt  for  a  few 
days  was  therefore  proposed,  during  which  we  might 
devote  our  time  to  hunting,  and  laying  in  sufficient 
meat  for  us  to  continue  our  route  to  the  East. 

On  the  second  morning  after  we  had  camped,  I 
started  alone  up  the  river. 

After  ascending  it  for  some  three  or  four  miles,  I 
crossed  and  broke  from  it  towards  the  south.  In  a 
brief  space  of  time,  I  spotted  an  antelope,  and  was  creep 
ing  up  to  it,  against  the  wind,  when  almost  close  to  me, 
beneath  a  large  rock  which  had  hitherto  concealed  it,  I 
caught  sight  of  another.  My  rifle  was  in  a  moment  at 
my  shoulder,  and  with  no  more  trouble  than  it  takes  in 
telling  it,  I  rolled  him  over. 

This  had  occurred  in  the  afternoon,  and  as  I  should 
have  to  carry  the  animal  back  with  me,  I  thought  it 
might  be  as  well  to  retrace  my  steps. 

Tying  its  feet  together,  I  accordingly  slung  the  dead 
antelope  upon  my  back  and  started  on  my  return. 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  251 

The  side  of  the  Colorado  in  which  our  camp  had 
been  pitched,  swept  down  to  its  banks  with  a  park-like 
slope,  although  its  herbage  and  the  trees  with  which  it 
was  broken  up,  were  wilder  and  more  luxuriant  than 
such  a  qualifying  epithet  might  lead  the  reader  to  sup 
pose  they  were.  On  the  side  to  which  I  had  crossed, 
the  stream  was  bounded  by  an  almost  perpendicular 
wall  of  cliff,  about  sixty  or  seventy  feet  in  height. 
Calculating  that  I  should  readily  iind  some  spot  at 
which  to  descend,  I  had  taken  my  way  almost  in  a  bee- 
line  to  the  spot  opposite  our  camping-ground.  Scarcely 
had  I  covered  more  than  a  mile  in  this  direction  than, 
happening  to  turn  my  head  to  the  left,  1  saw  a  number 
of  red-skins  rushing  towards  me. 

So  thoroughly  unmolested  had  our  party  been  by 
Indians,  since  we  had  left  Belmont,  that  I  had  entirely 
forgotten  Arnold's  warning  hint  about  their  presence  in 
this  part  of  the  country.  Indeed,  I  had  not  even 
thought  about  them  lately,  so  apparently  secure  from 
their  presence  did  we  seem  to  be. 

Here,  however,  they  were,  and  plenty  of  them. 
Dropping  the  antelope  in  order  to  save  myself,  I  took 
to  my  heels. 

On  arriving  at  the  top  of  the  cliff,  immediately  oppo 
site  the  camp,  I  found  no  place  at  which  I  could  man 
age  to  reach  the  bottom.  The  side  of  the  cliff  appeared 
to  be  one  unbroken  wall  of  rock. 

Dashing  up  the  river  along  the  summit,  at  a  little 
distance  above  I  found  a  small  notch  in  its  face,  haply, 
worn  by  some  one  of  the  numerous  rivulets  which  seam 
the  hills  and  mountains  in  winter.  This  afforded  a 
means  of  partially  sliding  down  or  dropping  to  the  level 
of  the  stream.  The  boys,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 


252  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Colorado,  discerned  me  just  as  I  had  discovered  fliis. 
They  also  saw  the  Indians,  who  were  gradually  closing 
upon  me,  and  a  volley  of  balls  rattled  amongst  them. 

At  the  same  time,  I  had  dropped  upon  my  knee  be 
hind  a  rock,  and  given  one  of  them  a  very  conclusive 
hint,  that,  on  his  part,  at  least,  any  further  pursuit  of 
me  must  be  useless. 

But  my  discharge  had  scarcely  rung  upon  the  ear, 
than  two  red-skins  had  seized  me. 

They  had  attempted  to  cut  me  off,  and  my  unlucky 
wish  to  take  a  hand  in  the  play  of  my  friends,  had  given 
them  the  chance  of  succeeding.  In  the  struggle  my 
rifle  was  kicked  over  the  brink  of  the  precipice,  and  fell 
into  the  river.  I  had  dashed  one  of  the  Indians  from 
me,  and  had  gripped  the  other  by  the  throat,  when  they 
were  joined  by  two  more.  Forcing  me  upon  the  ground, 
they  speedily  tied  my  hands  together,  and  dragging 
me  from  behind  the  rock  to  the  brow  of  the  cliff,  in 
plain  sight  of  the  boys,  threw  me  over. 

The  next  thing  I  remember  was  the  voice  of  Brighton 
Bill. 

"  H'it's  ha  blamed  good  chance,"  he  said  to  some  one 
who  was  standing  by  him,  "  'e  didn't  smash  'is  'ead  lion 
the  rocks,  or  'e'd  this  time  be  ha  goner.  Il'i  guess  Vll 
go  'ome  now,  hand  give  hup  wanting  to  tight  for  Ilun- 
cle  Sam." 

"  He'd  do  the  old  boy  more  good  by  ridding  the  coun 
try  of  them  cussed  red  devils,  than  by  any  other  way," 
was  the  reply  of  Butch'. 

Bill  had  seen  my  body  flying  over  the  face  of  the 
precipice.  He  was  an  excellent  swimmer,  and,  almost 
as  I  struck  the  water,  had  plunged  in  after  me.  When 
I  heard  what  Hasbrouck  said,  I  endeavored  to  speak, 


BUCKSKIN    MOSK.  253 

but  for  some  moments  conld  not  manage  to  make  a 
single  word  audible ;  while  the  boys,  seeing  the  motion 
of  my  lips,  were  crowding  round  me,  and  uttering  every 
class  of  kind  comfort,  and  not  unchristianly  profane 
tenderness.  When,  at  length,  I  was  able  to  find  utter 
ance,  it  was  to  Hasbrouck  I  spoke. 

"  You  are  about  right,  Butch'.  We'll  first  wipe  out 
some  of  these  cursed  Apaches." 

"  How  do  you  feel  now,  Mose  ? "  asked  Arnold,  upon 
whose  knee  I  found  my  head  was  resting. 

"  Not  very  much  damaged,"  I  replied,  as  I  managed 
to  sit  up,  "  except  by  the  loss  of  my  rifle." 

"Hif  that's  hall,"  said  Bill  joyously,  "  Hi'm  blowed 
hif  you're  much  'urt.  H'as  for  your  gun,  Painter  can 
tell  you  h'if  hit's  much  hout  hof  geer." 

"  It  only  got  a  good  wetting,"  was  Ben's  answer.  "  It 
war  wuss  for  the  cartridges  than  't  war  for  the  barrel." 

Like  a  practical  man,  he  had  been  employed  in  taking 
it  to  pieces,  drying  and  cleaning  it,  after  Bill  had  dived 
for  it  and  brought  it  to  land  with  him. 

"  Now,  tell  us,  how  you  got  into  this  darned  scrape, 
old  boy?" 

In  compliance  with  Arnold's  request,  I  gave  them  a 
thorough  narration,  and  as  the  moon  had  risen  and  it 
evidently  promised  to  be  a  clear  night,  in  another  hour 
some  half  of  the  Rangers  crossed  the  Colorado  to  look 
after  the  antelope,  and  if  they  could  to  pick  off  one  or 
two  of  my  assailants.  However,  they  succeeded  in  find 
ing  neither  antelope  nor  Apaches.  The  last  had  carried 
off  not  only  all  of  their  own  scalps,  but  also  the  carcass 
of  the  game  I  had  counted  on  for  our  supper. 

We  remained  in  this  part  of  the  country  for  some 
little  time. 


254  BUCKSKIN   HOSE. 

Nevertheless,  we  scared  up  no  more  red-skins.  The 
Apaches,  perhaps,  had  more  respect  for  our  rifles  than 
the  Bannocks  lately  had.  Possibly,  also,  they  were,  at 
the  time,  not  in  force  between  Prescott  and  the  Colo 
rado.  In  any  case,  we  saw  nothing  of  them,  and  were 
unable  to  punish  them  for  their  disturbance  of  our  hunt 
ing.  In  addition  to  this,  we  killed  very  little  game,  and 
at  length  crossed  from  Prescott  down  the  Gila  River  to 
Fort  Ynma.  Thence,  after  remaining  in  its  neighbor 
hood  for  a  few  days,  we  returned  and  followed  up  the 
Colorado,  through  the  Mojava  and  Navajos  settlements, 
occupied  by  partially  civilized  red-skins,  until,  late  in 
September,  we  once  more  found  ourselves  in  the  Honey 
Lake  Yalley. 


CHAPTER  XYIIL 

CIVILIZED  LIFE  IN  A  LARGE  AND  YOUNG  CITY— WHAT  A  RED 
SKIN  WOULD  THINK  OP   IT — A  CHANDELIER  AND  A  BONFIRE — 

THE  OLD  FRIEND — THE  WELL-KNOWN  PIPE — Too  OLD  TO 
KILL — SPITTED — THE  WHITE  MAHALA — AGAIN  IN  CO-OPERA 
TION  WITH  THE  GOVERNMENT — THREE  MORE  INDIAN  MUR 
DERS — OUR  INDIAN  RECRUIT — "  SHOOT  HEAP,  BUT  NO  GUN" 
—  "A  CONVARTED  RED  DEVIL." 

THE  following  winter  was  passed  by  me  in  San  Fran 
cisco.  It  was  for  the  first  time  since  I  had  joined  Cap 
tain  Grim  in  crossing  the  Plains,  that  I  had  trodden  the 
streets  of  a  large  city.  All  seemed  to  me  so  new,  so 
busy,  so  thickly  populated,  that,  for  a  few  days,  it  ap 
peared  to  me  like  the  real  Wilderness,  while  I  looked 
back  on  the  mountains,  the  forests,  the  canons,  and  the 
desert  1  had  left,  as  my  actual  world. 

My  feelings  partially  realized  those  of  the  savage, 
when  for  the  first  time  he  treads  in  the  active  marts  of 
trade,  and  their  equally  laborious  wealth  or  poverty. 

Mingling  with  his  wonder  at  the  thronged  and  toiling 
stores,  the  superficial  wealth  everywhere  apparent,  the 
spars  and  masts  of  the  huge  shipping,  the  numerous 
spires,  the  sloping-eyed  and  high  cheek-boned  Chinese, 
the  buzz  of  countless  life  surging  around  him,  the 
clanging  bells  from  the  churches,  haply  the  decorated 
volunteers  stepping  out  to  the  voice  of  drum  and  trum 
pet,  with  the  elegantly  dressed  women,  the  inanely  sim 
pering  dandies,  and  blear-eyed  spectacled  old  men,  who 
have  been  working  on  and  on  without  pause  or  cessation 


256  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

for  scores  of  years — there  cannot  but  rise  in  him  a  feel 
ing  of  contempt  for  all  he  sees  before  him. 

lie  may  not  but  contrast  his  own  chainless  and  un 
fettered  existence  with  that  walled-in  life  whose  pas 
sions  are  merely,  so  it  would  appear  to  him,  things 
of  routine ;  whose  enjoyments  seem  to  him  meaningless 
shadows  ;  whose  loves  and  hates  \vould  count  in  his  eye 
as  nothing ;  and  whose  range,  from  the  cradle  to  the 
grave,  is  to  him  narrower  than  the  glad  gallop  of  a 
single  day  on  which  he  sights  his  game,  or  spots  his 
enemy. 

But  what  have  I  to  do  with  such  thoughts  as  these  ? 
My  white  friend  cannot  realize  them — nor  can  my 
red  enemy  even  read  them.  The  first  will  consequently 
laugh  at  me  for  indulging  in,  while  the  last  will  never 
hear  of  my  having  entertained,  any  such  reflections. 

Moreover,  after  the  first  week  of  my  sojourn  in  San 
Francisco,  they  gradually  wore  away.  In  my  early  life, 
which  had  been  for  so  many  years  almost  forgotten,  I 
had  been  upon  the  stage,  had  dealt  in  pop-corn,  and  had 
proven  my  skill  as  a  detective.  If  I  could  now  find 
no  occasion  to  employ  one  of  the  last-named  class,  I 
could  in  any  case  purchase  and  eat  the  second  when  it 
came  in  my  way,  and  gaze  upon  that  which  was  enacted 
on  the  first,  either  laughingly  or  applausively.  So,  by 
degrees,  the  old-time  fancies  came  back,  and  I  began 
to  believe  there  might  be  some  delight  in  civilization 
after  all.  I  saw  a  few  friends,  and,  as  I  was  not  with 
out  money,  made  many  new.  Some  of  these  have  been 
really  friends,  and  some  of  them — well !  it  would  be  use 
less  to  sum  up  their  characters,  as  they  were  not  the  red 
devils  I  had  latterly  been  brought  in  contact  with. 
Possibly,  none  of  them  would  have  felt  any  pleasure  in 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  257 

making  my  body  serve  as  a  living  chandelier,  by  way  of 
a  prelude  to  lighting  a  bonfire  with  my  person  as  the 
central  faggot.  Yet,  very  certainly,  they  would  have 
cleaned  me  out  of  all  I  had  about  me,  without  the 
slightest  compunction,  not  even  allowing  me  to  retain 
the  price  of  one  meal. 

Amongst  my  old  friends,  I  met  Captain  Grim,  then 
a  wealthy  horse-dealer,  dwelling  on  the  Mission,  and 
one  whose  word  would  have  been  good  for  thousands. 

After  our  first  interview,  we  dined  together;  and  when 
I  had  given  him  a  rough  sketch  of  my  adventurous 
life  after  he  had  left  me  at  Susan ville,  we  had  a  long 
talk  over  the  events  attending  my  first  appearance  on 
the  Plains  under  my  engagement  with  him.  Many  of 
the  incidents  which  had  occurred  during  it  had  almost 
been  forgotten  by  me  until  he  recalled  them,  and  three 
or  four  of  them  were  solemnized  by  a  hearty  roar  of 
laughter  upon  my  part,  in  which  my  old  Captain  joined 
with  a  will. 

However,  all  pleasures  must  end.  It  was  thus  with 
my  visit  to  the  capital  of  the  West. 

After  the  first  week  of  my  stay  in  San  Francisco, 
there  is  no  doubt  but  that  I  began  to  enjoy  the  novelty 
of  complete  civilization  thoroughly.  Neither  can  there 
be  any  doubt  but  that  complete  civilization  as  thoroughly 
enjoyed  me.  In  truth,  in  some  three  months  it  literally 
cleaned  me  out.  An  offer  was  made  me  of  a  brief 
engagement  on  the  stage.  But  my  first  week's  repug 
nance,  when  my  pockets  were  not  empty,  had  with  their 
emptiness  deepened  into  a  strong  disgust.  Shaking  off 
the  dust  from  the  soles,  not  of  my  feet,  but  my  boots, 
in  the  spring,  I  again  turned  my  face  towards  Honey 
Lake. 


258  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

It  need  scarcely  be  affirmed  that  iny  little  wife  was 
glad  enough  to  see  me  again.  Without  imputing  to  her 
any  lack  of  affection,  it  may,  however,  be  assumed  that 
the  Rangers  were  almost  as  pleased  as  she  was,  at  my 
reappearance  in  Susan ville.  Brighton  Bill,  as  I  after 
wards  heard,  said : 

"  Now,  Hi'm  blowed  hif  we  shan't  'ave  ha  little  fun. 
Mose  his  has  good  ha  Cap  for  ha  lark,  has  ha  Hingun 
skrimrnage." 

Whether  so  or  not,  the  boys  rallied  round  me  at  once, 
and,  greatly  to  my  wife's  disgust,  commenced  a  series 
of  plannings  and  plottings  for  the  occupation  of  the 
ensuing  summer  and  winter. 

This  year  was  commemorated  by  a  very  heavy  emi 
gration  to  Idaho  by  the  way  of  Susan  ville,  Surprise 
Yalley,  and  Peuabla  Mountain.  General  Wright,  who 
was  on  his  way  to  the  vicinity  of  the  latter,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  prospecting  with  a  party  of  some  twelve  men, 
had  been  specially  recommended  to  me,  and  tarried  with 
me  for  some  four  or  five  weeks. 

After  this,  he  had  started  in  the  direction  of  Peuabla. 
For  a  considerable  length  of  time  no  news  came  back 
to  us,  in  any  way,  of  his  party.  Naturally,  this,  at  first, 
caused  small  uneasiness  on  our  parts.  Neither  the  Pony 
Express  nor  the  Telegraph  have  yet  penetrated  every 
part  of  the  great  but  sparsely  settled  West.  In  conse 
quence  of  this,  the  lack  of  constant  intelligence  scarcely 
argued  that  the  receipt  of  news  must  unmistakably  be 
unpleasant,  if  not  disastrous. 

However,  I  chanced  to  be  out  with  a  party  of  the 
Rangers,  on  our  way  to  the  Humboldt  River.  We  were 
near  Black  Rock,  when  we  happened  to  meet  an  old 
Pah-ute  Indian  with  several  squaws,  possibly  or  not,  his 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  259 

own  property.  There  was  an  appearance  of  a  sort  of 
Mormon  respectability  about  the  wrinkled  red-skin, 
which  at  the  moment  impressed  me,  to  a  certain  extent, 
favorably.  Feeling  this,  I  stepped  up  to  him  for  the 
purpose  of  speaking.  Judge  what  my  astonisment  was, 
when,  drawing  near  him,  to  notice  that  he  was  smoking 
a  pipe  which  I  positively  remembered  as  having  been 
in  the  possession  of  the  General. 

There  could  not  be  the  slightest  mistake  in  this  fact. 

It  was  much  too  costly  a  pipe  to  have  come  into  the 
possession  of  any  Indian,  save  as  a  present,  or  by  the 
more  usual  means  in  which  the  red-skin  may  acquire 
such  property.  My  readers  will  very  readily  understand 
what  such  means  are.  Wright  had  himself  told  me  how 
highly  he  valued  this  pipe.  It  had  been  presented  to 
him  by  a  dear  friend,  who  wTas  at  this  time  dead.  There 
must  necessarily  have  been  but  small  probability  that  it 
should  have  been  a  voluntary  gift  to  the  old  Pah-ute. 

Taking  it  at  once  from  him,  I  demanded  "  where  "  he 
"got  it." 

"  Me  heap  find  em,"  was  his  leisurely  reply.  "  Injin 
no  steal  'em." 

By  this  time,  Bill  Dow  and  several  of  the  other  Ran 
gers  had  joined'  us.  Dow  also  had  happened  to  notice 
the  pipe  iii  the  General's  possession.  With  an  angry  im 
precation,  he  exclaimed : 

"  Yer  lie,  yer  red  devil ! "  Then  turning  to  me,  he 
said:  "  Mose !  as  sure  as  God's  in  Heaven,  that  'ere  cuss 
has  had  a  hand  in  killing  Wright,  for  sartin.  I  reckon 
we'd  jist  better  go  over  to  Pabla,  and  look  arter  his 
party.  Not,  Cap !  as  I  wants  to  dictate  to  yer.  Only 
knowing  as  how  the  Gineral  was  a  real  friend  of  your'n, 
I  thought,  perhaps — " 


260  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

"  Thought !  "  I  cried  out,  "  Dow,  when  you  know  you 
are  right." 

"  I'm  dead  sartin  of  it,"  he  muttered  between  his  teeth. 

The  aged  Pah-ute  had,  while  this  was  passing,  been 
regarding  me  with  that  stoical  indifference  of  feature 
which  is  so  characteristic  of  the  red  man.  Looking 
fixedly  at  him,  I  said  : 

u  If  you  were  not  an  old  fellow,  I  would  at  once  kill 
you.  But  if  anything  has  gone  wrong  with  the  General 
or  his  party,  see  that  you  never  again  allow  yourself  to 
come  within  sight  of  me." 

Immediately  after  this,  we  started  for  Summit  Lake, 
and  passing  it,  went  down  the  canon  as  far  as  the  Puabla. 
On  the  following  day  about  noon,  we  came  to  a  cabin 
which  had  very  evidently  been  occupied  by  Wright  and 
his  companions.  It  was  now  empty.  >  The  small  canon 
in  which  this  rough  cabin  stood  was  filled  with  cotton- 
wood  trees  and  a  dense  growth  of  small  underbrush. 
As  we  were  examining  the  place,  I  came  upon  the  first 
fragmentary  testimony  of  the  dark  tragedy  which  had 
branded  this  spot  with  an  ineffaceable  stain.  This  was 
the  leg  of  a  man,  which  had  been  hewn  off  just  below 
the  knee.  While  I  was  yet  looking  at  it,  Arnold  called 
out  in  a  tremulously  hollow  voice,  which  at  once  indi 
cated  from  how  intensely  nervous  an  agitation  he  must 
be  suffering: 

"  Come  here,  Mose." 

He  was  but  a  short  distance  in  advance  of  me ;  and 
when  I  arrived  where  he  was  standing,  let  me  own  that 
I  frankly  regretted  not  having  cut  the  throat  of  the 
wrinkled  old  ruffian  whose  possession  of  the  General's 
pipe  had  placed  me  on  the  track  of  this  most  dastardly 
and  savage  murder — aye !  and  the  throats  of  all  the 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  261 

squaws  who  were  with  him,  too.  Had  I  not,  in  my  own 
person,  had  a  sufficient  experience  of  the  gentleness  of 
these  she-devils  ?  Could  I  doubt  that  it  had  been  also 
displayed  in  the  atrocious  massacre  of  General  Wright 
and  the  unfortunate  men  who  had  accompanied  him  ? 

I  shall,  of  course,  be  asked  for  the  full  particulars  of 
this  ferocious  butchery.  Let  me  be  as  brief  as  I  can  in 
penning  the  details,  which  almost  sicken  me  while  I  re 
call  them. 

We  found  the  General  actually  spitted,  a  pointed 
stake  having  been  forced  lengthwise  from  behind  through 
his  body,  and  protruding  beneath  his  chin.  This  stake 
had  then  been  placed  upon  two  crotched  limbs  of  trees, 
above  a  fire,  of  which  nothing  but  the  dead  embers  now 
remained.  As  far  as  we  could  make  out,  there  were  no 
other  marks  of  violence  on  the  charred  shape  of  the  vic 
tim.  He  must  have  been  killed  by  the  terrible  torture  of 
thrusting  this  stake  through  his  entrails.  The  remainder 
of  his  party  had  been  literally  cut  into  pieces.  Arms, 
hands,  heads,  feet,  legs,  thighs,  and  bodies  had  been 
hewn  apart,  and  were  scattered  around  in  the  brush. 
'Noi-  was  there  more  than  one  of  the  victims  who  might 
have  been  slain  before  they  were  subjected  to  this  inch 
by  inch  torture.  Only  a  single  wound  by  a  bullet 
could  be  found  by  us,  on  any  of  these  mutilated  frag 
ments  of  what  had  once  been  life. 

And  these  brutal  devils  are  the  race  that  the  Govern 
ment  of  the  United  States  demand  should  be  dealt 
gently  with  by  its  children.  I  should  refrain  from 
denouncing  them,  perhaps,  when  the  barbarities  I  had 
twice  experienced  at  their  hands  are  remembered  by 
me.  But  in  such  a  case  as  the  present  one,  where  my 
memory  has  no  individual  suifering  to  give  it  edge 


262  BUCKSKIN:    MOSE. 

and  bitterness,  I  may  surely  be  permitted  to  express 
my  opinions.  This,  the  more  specially,  when  I  know 
that  these  opinions  are  shared  in  by  every  settler  who 
has  had  some  two  or  three  years'  practical  dealing 
with  the  falsehood,  rascality,  treachery,  blood-thirsti 
ness,  and  demon-like  barbarity,  which,  almost  invaria 
bly,  in  every  instance,  characterize  the  Western  In 
dian. 

What,  let  me  fearlessly  ask,  could  in  any  way  have 
been  the  natural  result  of  the  hesitation  of  the  Govern 
ment  at  Washington,  to  operate  efficiently  for  the  pro 
tection  of  its  own  children  ? 

These  men  had,  undoubtedly,  the  right  to  claim  such 
a  protection.  Any  other  country  to  which  they  might 
have  belonged,  would  have  given  it  to  them.  It  has, 
however,  been  consistently  refused,  or  accorded  them  in 
a  way  which  renders  it  worse  than  useless.  They  have, 
consequently,  been  compelled  to  rely  upon  themselves 
for  protection,  it  being  carried  out  after  their  own  fash 
ion.  Necessarily,  this  fashion  has  varied.  But,  in  no 
case,  could  it  take  a  shape  other  than  of  the  struggle 
ever-existent  between  the  conflicting  parties,  when  law 
has  become  paralyzed,  or  neglects  to  put  in  a  satisfactory 
appearance.  For  many  years^  legal  restraint  had  been 
overridden  in  San  Francisco.  At  length,  the  condi 
tion  of  society  resulting  from  this  became  unbearable. 
It  was  then  that  the  citizens  of  the  capital  of  the  young 
and  vigorous  West  took  the  matter  into  their  own 
hands,  independently  of  the  State  authorities.  A  vigil 
ance  committee  sprung  from  their  actual  necessity,  and, 
in  a  short  space  of  time,  daily  crime  was  reduced  to  the 
ordinary  ratio  it  bears  in  civilization.  Even  in  the 
great  Eastern  metropolis,  during  the  past  two  or  three 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

years,  a  similar  necessity  has  been  proclaimed,  and  a 
like  exertion  of  the  popular  will  has  been  predicted  by 
some  of  the  leading  New  York  journals.  There,  how 
ever,  law  seems  recently  to  have  awakened  from  its 
long  slumber,  and,  if  consistently  active  and  severe, 
will  repress  the  lawlessness  of  passion  or  criminality. 

But  where  there  is  no  law,  save  on  sparsely  rare  oc 
casions,  as  is  sufficiently  evidenced  on  the  mountains,  and 
in  the  valleys  and  plains  bordering  on  California,  the 
action  of  vigilance  committees,  or  some  restraint  as  sharp 
and  certain,  is  a  paramount  necessity. 

How  can  it  be  wondered  at,  while  crime  of  the  nat 
ure  of  the  last-mentioned,  and  others  which  I  have  re 
counted,  are  of  well-nigh  yearly  occurrence,  that  it  should 
have  exerted,  on  the  part  of  those  exposed  to  its  visita 
tion — without  the  interference  of  national  protection 
except  at  rare  intervals — the  determination  to  repress  it, 
bloodily  and  mercilessly,  as  the  instances  in  which  it 
develops  its  own  atrocity  and  pitilessness,  too  evidently 
require  ? 

However,  let  me  avoid  the  appearance  of  defending 
what  I  believe  to  be  the  righteous  exertion  of  a  spirit 
of  self -protection,  and  leave  it  to  the  unbiassed  judgment 
of  my  readers. 

Burying  the  fragments  of  the  bodies  of  the  poor  vic 
tims,  or  as  many  of  them  as  we  could  find  after  a  long 
and  sorrowful  search,  in  as  decent  a  manner  as  we  could, 
we  resumed  our  way  to  the  Ilumboldt.  Here  we  lo 
cated  some  six  miles  above  Lancaster,  on  this  river,  and 
met  with  no  very  great  success  in  our  search  for  the 
precious  metals.  While  here,  an  Indian  from  above 
Gravelly  Ford,  known  by  us  as  Shoshonee  John,  came 
in  to  our  party.  He  could  talk  very  fair  English,  and 


264:  BUCKSKIN   MOSE.' 

had  been  driven  from  his  tribe  in  consequence  of  his 
openly  professed  friendly  feeling  to  the  whites.  After 
a  brief  discussion  among  the  boys,  he  was  permitted  to 
remain  with  us,  until  we  started  on  our  return.  This 
was  some  time  in  August,  in  1865. 

We  had  reached  the  back  of  Granite  Creek  Station, 
which  was  then  kept  by  Allen  Simmons,  from  Oroville, 
and  a  man  of  the  name  of  Bill  Curry,  when  we  fell  in 
with  some  eight  or  ten  Mahalas,  with  their  papooses  or 
children. 

One  of  the  Mahalas  was  a  white  woman.  She  had 
been  taken  by  the  Bannocks  when  she  was  no  more 
than  twelve  years  of  age,  in  1851.  All  her  relatives 
and  companions  had  been  killed  by  them.  Only  her 
self  had  been  spared.  She  was  now  married  to  a  red 
skin,  by  whom,  she  told  us,  she  had  live  children.  On 
our  asking  her  to  leave  her  captors,  with  the  tears  stand 
ing  in  her  eyes,  she  refused  to  do  so.  She  said  that  she 
knew  of  no  friends  who  would  receive  her.  What,  she 
did  not  attempt  to  disguise  that  she  considered  as  the 
disgrace  of  her  present  life,  would,  as  she  felt,  preclude 
her  from  all  white  friendship.  In  consequence  of  this, 
she  avowed  herself  determined  to  remain.  On  being 
further  questioned,  she  told  us  that  we  were  the  first 
white  men  she  had  seen  since  the  period  of  her  capture. 
I  then  asked  her,  if  she  had  heard  of  the  horrible  mas 
sacre  of  General  Wright  and  his  party.  Bursting  into 
tears,  she  affirmed  that  it  had  been  "  the  work  of  Smoke- 
creek  Sam,  and  the  wretches  who  were  with  him." 

Her  grief  and  disgust  at  this  were  so  marked  and  un  - 
mistakable,  that  I  had  no  hesitation  in  asking  her  to 
tell  us  how  and  where  we  might  find  this  scoundrel  and 
his  gang  of  ruffians.  "Without  the  slightest  hesitation, 


BUCKSKIN    HOSE.  265 

she  did  so.  Indeed,  from  the  sudden  flash  in  her  eyes, 
and  the  rush  of  color  to  her  tanned,  yet  still  smooth 
cheeks,  I  felt  convinced  she  experienced  a  bitter  delight 
in  believing  that  we  might  punish  him.  It  is  generally 
impossible  for  the  necessity  of  life,  or  even  for  love,  to 
blot  out  the  ties  of  blood.  She  might  be  compulsorily  a 
Mahal  a,  yet  was  still,  at  heart,  a  white  woman. 

Again  I  endeavored  to  induce  her  to  quit  her  present 
mode  of  life,  but,  unhesitatingly,  although  sadly,  she 
refused  to  abandon  the  red-skin  with  whom  her  ex 
istence  had  been  for  so  many  years' linked,  and  his  and 
her  children. 

At  Granite  Station,  Al.  Simmons  gave  us  additional 
information  respecting  Smoke-creek  Sam.  He  had  a 
few  days  before  surprised  a  party  of  Chinamen,  between 
the  Peuabla  mountain  and  Owyhee  River.  Some  sixty, 
in  all  of  them,  had  been  murdered  by  the  gang.  This 
had  been  effected,  in  a  similar  way  to  the  cruel  mode 
of  death  by  which  General  Wright  had  perished. 

Pushing  on,  therefore,  to  the  military  station  at 
Smoke  Creek,  we  detailed  the  circumstances  of  these 
bloody  outrages  to  Captain  Smith,  who  was  then  in 
command  of  it. 

His  horror  at  hearing  of  the  last,  and  being  made 
acquainted  with  the  details  of  the  first,  by  those  who 
had  seen  the  remains  of  the  murdered  party,  was  as 
thorough,  almost,  as  ours  had  been.  An  arrangement 
with  him  was,  in  consequence,  speedily  concluded, 
by  which  we  were  to  proceed  to  Susan  ville,  and,  after 
giving  our  horses  and  ourselves  a  few  days'  rest,  return 
to  the  station.  Thence  we  were  to  start,  in  company 
with  himself  and  men,  to  inflict,  if  possible,  a  well- 
12 


266  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

deserved  and  retributory  punishment  on  Smoke-creek 
Sam  and  his  gang. 

On  arriving  at  the  station,  we  found  a  party  of  three 
or  four  men  from  the  Humboldt,  who  had  preceded  us 
by  a  few  hours. 

They  had  brought  the  intelligence  that  a  party  of 
Indians  had  visited  Granite  Creek  on  the  day  before. 
The  station,  as  they  informed  us,  had  been  burned  to 
the  ground.  Al.  Simmons,  Bill  Curry,  and  another 
man,  had  been  killed.  When  A.  R.  Le  Roy,  who  had 
joined  the  Rangers  previous  to  our  leaving  the  Hum 
boldt  River,  heard  this,  he  was  fearfully  excited.  Al. 
Simmons  had  been  one  of  his  dearest  friends,  and  the 
news  of  this  additional  murder  increased  not  only  his 
rage,  but  that  of  all  of  us. 

Captain  Smith  was  by  no  means  dilatory.  His  men 
were  soon  in  their  saddles,  after  we  had  rejoined  him, 
and  we  pushed  on  rapidly  to  Granite  Creek. 

About  one  hundred  yards  west  of  the  station,  we 
found  the  body  of  Simmons,  lying  on  his  face  upon  the 
ground.  A  small  bullet-hole  was  just  outside  of  his 
heart.  He  must  have  been  slain  instantly.  Myself 
and  the  other  boys  felt  his  death  as  keenly  as  we  had 
done  anything,  for  some  time.  Scarcely  eight  days 
since,  we  had  been  sitting  with  him,  and  talking  of  the 
butchery  of  the  Chinese ;  and  now  we  saw  that  his  life 
had  been  sacrificed  by  the  red  devils  as  relentlessly, 
although  in  a  less  cowardly  manner.  As  for  Le  Roy, 
when  he  saw  the  body,  lie  flung  himself  on  the  ground 
beside  it,  and  throwing  his  arms  around  the  lifeless 
form  of  his  friend,  burst  into  a  savage  flood  of  tears. 
Within  the  burned-up  timber  of  the  station  lay  poor 
Curry,  who  had  been  slain  there*  The  third  man  had 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  267 

evidently  attempted  to  escape  by  flight.  But  the  Indians 
had  been  too  quick  for  him.  Judging  by  their  tracks, 
which  were  still  clearly  visible,  he  had  been  pursued, 
overtaken,  and  brought  back.  Less  fortunate  than  the 
others,  his  death  had  not  been  so  speedy.  He  had  been 
stretched  upon  the  earth  with  his  face  downwards. 
His  hands  and  feet  had  been  fastened  by  thongs  to 
stakes  driven  into  it.  Brush  and  branches,  hewn  from 
the  trees,  had  been  then  heaped  upon  his  body  and  set 
fire  to. 

It  would  be  unnecessary  to  say,  that  had  anything 
been  wanting  to  quicken  our  desire  for  retaliation,  this 
must  have  done  so.  After  attending  to  a  hurried 
burial,  we  took  the  trail,  which  led  us  evidently  in  the 
direction  the  white  Mahala  had  indicated  to  me,  when  I 
had  asked  her  to  tell  me  where  Smoke-creek  Sam  and 
his  gang  were  generally  to  be  found. 

.Two  days  after,  we  camped  for  the  night  in  a  small 
valley  in  the  mountains  above  Black  Rock. 

This  valley  was  some  six  miles,  or  more,  distant  from 
an  almost  level  piece  of  ground,  to  which  the  name  of 
Soldier  Meadows  had  been  given. 

After  attending  to  the  demands  of  our  stomachs,  for 
we  had  been  on  our  own  legs  or  those  of  our  horses 
since  daybreak,  I  went  out  with  some  other  of  the 
Hangers,  as  scouts,  to  discover  if  we  were  yet  near  the 
red-skins.  Possibly  an  hour  and  a  half  may  have 
elapsed,  when  some  camp-fires  were  seen  by  me  in  the 
direction  of  the  upper  part  of  Queen's  River.  Shosh- 
onee  John  had  accompanied  me,  and  detected  them  as 
quickly  as  I  had  done. 

"  Pah-ute  Ingin  !  "  he  at  once  said. 

"  Or  Smoke-creek  Sam ! "  I  could  not  help  replying. 


268  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

"  All,  heap  same.  Pah-ute  as  bad,  only  Smoky- 
creek  Sam  some  worse." 

Without  pausing  to  discuss  his  exceeding  Irish  sum 
mary  of  the  merits  of  the  original  tribe,  and  those  who 
had  absconded  or  been  expelled  from  it,  we  immediately 
returned  to  our  camp,  being  joined  upon  our  way  by 
Butch'  Hasbrouck,  who  had  also  detected  the  same  camp- 
fires. 

"  How  far  off,  Butch',  did  you  believe  the  red-skins 
were  ? " 

"  Ten  miles  will  bring  yer  to  'em." 

"  He  right !  "  sententiously  observed  the  Indian  who 
had  accompanied  me. 

My  estimate  of  the  distance  agreed  with  theirs,  and 
upon  our  reaching  the  camp,  the  Rangers  immediately 
took  to  their  saddles,  and  Captain  Smith  ordered  his 
men  to  mount.  While  they  were  doing  this  the  red 
skin  addressed  me,  saying : 

"  Give  Shoshonee  John  a  gun,  to  help  shoot  heap  Pah- 
utes." 

"  How  do  I  know  you  will  ?  " 

The  question  was  prompted  by  the  knowledge  I  had 
acquired  of  the  Indian  character.  It  seemed  to  me  that 
if  the  petitioner  had  owned  a  gun  at  the  time  about 
which  he  first  joined  us,  he  might,  not  improbably,  have 
kept  out  of  our  neighborhood.  He,  however,  answered 
me  promptly  enough. 

"  Pah-ute  Ingin  heap  shoot  Shoshonee  John  when 
catch  him.  Shoshonee  John  shoot  him,  too." 

It  might  be  so.  But  Harry  Arnold  and  Ben  Painter 
took  the  same  view  of  the  case  as  I  did,  and  the  matter 
was  compromised  by  Captain  Smith  ordering  him  to  be 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  269 

given  a  cavalry  sabre.  At  the  same  time,  Brighton 
Bill,  who  had  been  listening,  growled  out : 

"  'E's  ha  convarted  red  devil.  lii'm  blamed  hif  Il'i 
wouldn't  'a  given  'im  a  rifle." 

When  within  a  mile  or  something  more  of  the  camp, 
a  halt  was  ordered,  while  some  of  us  made  a  reconnois- 
sance.  Creeping  up  to  their  position,  we  found  the 
band  must  count  heavily.  It  had  encamped  on  the  very 
edge  of  the  desert,  which  was  here  some  forty  miles 
across,  without  a  single  bush  or  shrub  growing  upon  it. 
It  formed  almost  a  dead  level,  and  in  the  dry  season 
was  so  hard  that  a  horse  would  scarcely  leave  the 
slightest  track  by  which  scout  or  red-skin  could  have 
trailed  it. 


CHAPTEK  XIX. 

A  LIVELY  COMMENCEMENT — THE  FIGHT  IN  THE  DESERT — EX 
TERMINATION  OP  A  BAND  OF  CUT-THROATS — THE  CAVALRY 
SABRE— A  CONTRAST — PERMITTED  TO  RETIRE  AND  RECEIV 
ING  PROMOTION— A  LITTLE  LOVE— CHANCE  AND  TROUBLE — 
WHAT  CAME  OF  IT — "SMOKING  OUT  A  VARMINT" — A  FEW 
PRISONERS — THE  INDIAN  AGENT — NEW  FRUIT  ON  A  TREE- 
ALONE  ON  A  TRAIL — THE  END. 

AFTER  a  brief  council,  in  which  Captain  Smith, 
Harry  Arnold,  and  myself  were  the  principal  ones  who 
took  a  part,  it  was  determined  to  surround  them  on  the 
side  where  we  then  were,  and  immediately  day  had  bro 
ken,  to  drive  them  to  the  desert.  By  doing  this,  we 
calculated  scarcely  one  of  them  would  have  a  chance  of 
escaping. 

"  At  last,  Mose  !  "  said  Le  Hoy,  who  happened  to  be 
near  me,  "  we  have  the  blood-thirsty  devils !  and  may 
God  not  spare  me,  if  I  fail  to  kill,  while  a  single  one  of 
them  is  left  alive." 

He  scarcely  seemed  to  be  aware  of  the  meaning  of 
his  muttered  words.  But  I  knew  of  what  he  was  think 
ing.  It  was  of  the  death  of  Al.  Simmons. 

In  some  forty  minutes  the  necessary  orders  had  been 
given,  and  we  had  advanced  nearly  within  gun-shot  of 
them.  We  had  moved  into  our  position  with  the  most 
complete  silence.  What  had  startled  the  Indians,  I  was 
and  still  am  unable  to  imagine.  They  had,  however,  dis 
covered  our  approach,  and  yelling  out  their  war-whoop, 
dashed  towards  us,  on  our  centre.  It  was  j ust  light  enough 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  271 

for  them  to  make  out  our  strength.  When  they  found 
this,  they  recoiled,  and,  almost  at  the  same  instant,  made 
a  charge  upon  our  left.  For  some  few  minutes  the  boys 
and  soldiers  on  that  side  of  our  position  had  lively  work, 
and  then,  finding  out  that  there  also  we  were  too  strong 
for  them,  the  red-skins  started  out  on  the  desert. 

We  pursued  them  leisurely  for  some  six  miles.  Then 
putting  the  spur  to  our  horses,  we  galloped  up  and  sur 
rounded  them. 

It  was  now  daylight.  We  could  see  the  work  before 
us. 

Justice  must  be  done  even  to  such  a  rascally  set  of 
murdering  thieves  as  Smoke-creek  Sam's  gang.  When 
caught,  they  did  fight,  as  I  honestly  believe  no  Pah-utes 
have  ever  before  done.  However,  the  blue-coated  ser 
vants  of  Uncle  Sam  and  the  Buckskin  Hangers  fought 
better.  The  soldiers  rode  amongst  the  red-skins,  hewing 
them  down  with  their  sabres,  while  our  boys  were 
equally  busy  with  revolver  and  knife. 

This  had  scarcely  been  going  on  for  as  many  minutes 
as  we  had  covered  miles  of  the  desert,  when  I  marked 
one  Indian.  From  descriptions  of  Smoke-creek  Sam, 
which  we  had  almost  all  of  us  heard,  I  determined 
that  this  must  be  the  scoundrel,  and  rode  up  to  him.  I 
was  lying  on  the  side  of  my  horse  when  he  saw  me. 
Lifting  his  revolver,  he  fired  three  or  four  shots  at  me 
as  rapidly  as  he  could. 

The  last  of  these  crashed  through  the  skull  of  the 
noble  brute,  that  had  borne  me  so  well  and  gall  an  tly  for 
so  many  years.  I  felt,  even  at  the  moment  in  which  he 
fell — in  spite  of  the  enemy  who  were  in  the  front  and 
on  all  sides  of  me — a  cruel  pang. 

It  so  happened  that  when  I  fell,  Arnold  was  near  me 


272  BUCKSKIN    MOSE. 

and  had  seen  the  shot  take  effect  on  the  animal  I  was 
mounted  on.  He  knew  how  greatly  I  valued  the  gift 
of  Jack  Bird,  not  simply  on  acount  of  the  giver,  but  on 
its  own  account.  I  heard  his  voice,  as  the  report  of  his 
own  pistol  rang  on  the  ear,  almost  immediately  follow 
ing  that  of  the  red-skin's.  Giving  utterance  to  a  fierce 
cry,  he  yelled  out : 

u  You  have  killed  the  Tipton  Slasher.  Take  that,  you 
red  devil ! " 

Harry's  ball  had  broken  the  right  arm  of  Smoke- 
creek  Sam,  and  he  had  gone  to  grass  as  it  struck  him, 
or,  at  all  events,  I  thought  so..  The  red  ruffian  had  cer 
tainly  fallen,  and,  extricating  myself  from  the  panting 
body  of  my  dying  horse,  I  leapt  towards  him  for  the 
purpose  of  raising  his  hair.  While  I  was  in  the  act  of 
doing  this,  I  saw  that  he  was  not  yet  dead.  With  a  des 
perate  clutch  of  his  left  hand,  he  was  trying  to  grasp 
the  revolver  which  had  fallen  from  his  maimed  limb 
upon  the  ground.  It  was  lying  a  trifle  beyond  his  reach, 
and  before  I  had  time  even  to  think  of  putting  him  out 
of  his  misery,  I  saw  the  gleam  of  a  cavalry  sabre  flash 
ing  through  the  air. 

The  blade  fell. 

In  another  instant,  the  savagely  brutal  head  of  Smoke- 
creek  Sam  was  hanging  from  his  shorn  neck,  attached 
to  it  merely  by  a  small  portion  of  bleeding  flesh.  At 
the  same  moment  when  this  was  effected,  a  voice 
shrieked  out : 

"  Buckeeskin  Mose,  he  now  see  whether  Shoshonee 
John  fight.  Think  him  kill  heap." 

There  was  clearly  no  more  reason  for  doubting  the 
sincerity  of  our  Indian  ally. 

"  Smoke-creek  Sam  ? " 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  273 

This  demand  was  made  by  me  with  an  inquiring  gest 
ure,  as,  in  doing  so,  I  extended  to  him  the  scalp  I  had 
just  lifted.  Looking  first  at  it,  and  then  at  the  head  he 
had  so  nearly  severed  from  the  body  it  belonged  to,  as  if 
to  make  sure  of  their  former  connection,  he  replied  : 

"  Heap  sure." 

The  answering  affirmative  was  uttered  with  a  senten 
tious  gravity,  exemplarily  characteristic  of  his  red  as- 
cestry,  as  Cooper  has  painted  similar  races  long  since 
wiped  out  by  our  rushing  civilization.  Striding  from 
us,  he  then  looked  around  the  battle-field  for  more  of 
his  brethren,  upon  whom  he  could  display  the  reality  of 
his  detestation  of  them,  as  well  as  his  capacity  as  a 
headsman. 

However,  by  this  time  the  strife  was  well-nigh  over. 
Not  one  of  Smoke-creek  Sam's  gang  could  be  seen  stand 
ing  upon  his  feet.  The  hard  soil  of  the  desert,  for  more 
than  quarter  of  a  mile  square,  was  strown  with  their 
dead  bodies.  Eighty-one  of  the  merciless  scoundrels 
had  paid  with  an  honorable  end  for  their  bloodily  dis 
gusting  crimes.  Not  a  single  red-skin  had  escaped  from 
the  bullet  or  the  sabre.  The  band  of  torturing  and  vil- 
lanous  cut-throats  and  murderers  had  been  totally  ex 
terminated. 

In  this  instance  also,  I  can  justly  say,  as  I  have  done 
in  Colonel  Connor's  battle  on  Bear  River,  that  Captain 
Smith,  although  an  officer  in  the  regular  service,  did  his 
work  well  and  thoroughly. 

The  Pah-utes,  however,  had  n'ot  been  reduced  to  tran 
quillity.  As  I  have  earlier  explained,  this  gang  was 
merely  a  section  of  that  tribe  whose  atrocities  and  law 
lessness  had  compelled  their  expulsion  from  it.  Not, 
indeed,  their  atrocity  arid  lawlessness  against  us,  the 
12* 


274  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

white  settlers,  but  that  which  they  displayed  at  the  ex 
pense  of  their  red  brethren. 

Scarcely  had  I  returned  and  been,  for  a  short  time, 
in  the  society  of  my  little  wife,  settled  down  in  Susan  - 
ville,  when  an  incident  occurred  which  fully  demonstrat 
ed  this  fact. 

At  this  time,  a  body  of  Uncle  Sam's  blue-coats  were 
stationed  in  the  vicinity  of  Summit  Lake.  The  cavalry 
was  under  the  command  of  Captain  Hall,  and  the  in 
fantry  under  that  of  Captain  Meyers.  It  happened  that 
two  of  our  most  prominent  citizens  were  crossing  the 
mountains,  some  four  miles  nearer  than  this  post,  when 
they  were  attacked  by  a  party  of  red-skins.  The  leg 
of  one  of  them,  named  Kesler,  was  broken  by  a  rifle- 
ball  at  the  first  volley  aimed  at  them  by  the  attacking 
Indians.  The  other  of  the  men  was  possessed  of  cool 
courage  and  indomitable  pluck.  This  was  Frank  Drake. 
~No  sooner  did  he  see  his  companion  fall,  than  he  asked 
briefly : 

"  Are  you  wounded  ? " 

"  The  red  cusses  have  broken  my  leg,  Drake !  " 

"  Yer  must  be  off,  then." 

"  How  on  airth  can  I  \ " 

"  We'll  soon  see,"  cried  Frank  cheerily. 

Cutting  one  of  the  horses  loose  from  their  team,  he 
helped  Kesler  on  to  it,  in  spite  of  the  bullets  which  were 
rattling  on  the  other  side  of  the  wagon.  Then,  bidding 
him  ride  to  the  Lake  to  ask  for  assistance  from  the  sol 
diers,  he  proposed  to  fight  it  out  alone  with  the  Indians. 
Kesler  remonstrated  vainly  with  him.  Giving  to  the 
horse  he  had  cut  loose  a  heavy  lash  with  the  whip  he 
had  previously  been  using,  he  said  : 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  275 

"  Go,  yer  darned  fool,  unless  yer  wish  both  on  ns  to 
be  done  for,  by  the  red  skunks." 

The  animal  started  with  Kesler,  followed  by  a  pelting 
shower  of  bullets.  None  of  them,  however,  struck  either 
him  or  the  horse.  This  unusual  hint,  in  all  probability, 
accelerated  the  speed  of  the  latter,  for  he  seems  to  have 
made  good  time.  In  about  twenty  minutes,  Kessler 
arrived  at  the  place  where  the  blue-coats  were  stationed, 
and  on  seeing  Captain  Hall,  told  him  the  situation  in 
which  he  had  left  Frank  Drake,  and  begged  him  to  send 
his  friend  "help  at  once."  This  officer  replied  in  the 
usual  official  slang  of  the  Plains: 

"  I've  lost  no  Indians,  and  I'll  be  hung,  if  I'm  going  to 
trot  out  my  men  for  nothing." 

"  Nothing !  Hain't  I  told  yer  Frank  Drake  is  fight 
ing  the  red  devils,  by  himself?" 

"  By  this  time,"  was  Hall's  reply,  "  the  man  is  killed. 
We  shan't  find  him." 

In  spite  of  this  refusal,  in  which  Uncle  Sam's  servant 
persisted,  some  few  of  his  men,  accompanied  by  several 
settlers  who  chanced  to  be  present,  at  once  mounted 
their  horses  and  galloped  off,  leaving  Kesler  behind,  to 
have  his  leg  attended  to  by  the  army  surgeon,  if  the 
post  rejoiced  in  such  an  appendage.  This  is  by  no 
means  invariably  the  case.  The  party  galloping  to  save 
the  plucky  Frank  Drake,  made  even  better  speed  than 
his  companion  had  done. 

No  sooner  were  their  rapidly  advancing  hoofs  heard, 
than  the  cowardly  Indians  fled. 

Upon  arriving  at  the  point  where  the  team  had  been 
left  standing,  they,  at  first,  saw  no  living  creature  save 
one  of  the  remaining  horses.  Frank  Drake  was  found 
by  them  stretched  under  the  wagon.  When  the  red- 


276  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

skins  ran,  lie  knew  relief  was  at  band,  and  had  fainted 
away  from  loss  of  blood.  Wounded  in  almost  every 
part  of  his  body  as  he  was,  by  great  luck,  not  one  of  the 
holes  made  by  the  Pah-utes  was  dangerous.  Two  of 
them  were  lying  dead  on  the  farther  side  of  the  road ; 
and  when  he  revived,  he  told  those  who  had  rescued  him 
he  thought  he  had  seen  a  third  of  them  carried  away 
as  they  were  approaching. 

The  preceding  incident  of  frontier  life  is  mentioned 
by  me  for  the  purpose  of  striking  a  just  balance  with 
regard  to  the  protection  afforded  the  settlements  by  the 
Government.  This  will  be  the  better  appreciated  by 
the  reader,  when  he  hears  I  have  been  told  that  Captain 
Smith  was  "  permitted  to  retire,"  while  Captain  Hall  has 
since  received  the  reward  due  to  his  services,  by  promo 
tion. 

Let  me,  before  closing  this. volume,  relate  another  in 
cident  which  displays,  in  an  even  more  striking  light,  the 
love  for  Uncle  Sam's  relatives  which  is  so  very  generally 
exhibited  by  his  servants. 

Some  time  in  1865  or  1866,  a  family  had  moved  into 
Honey  Lake  Valley  consisting  of  an  old  man  and  his 
wife,  with  a  daughter,  whose  charming  face  and  winning 
manners  might  have  entitled  her  to  a  place  in  far  better 
society  than  Susan ville  could  by  any  possibility  afford 
her.  The  name  of  the  family  was  Pierson.  Their  child 
was  called  Ilattie.  They  had  settled  on  a  ranche  just 
below  Laithrop's  place  and  near  the  Hot  Springs.  Butch' 
Ilasbrouek  had,  shortly  after  the  family  arrived,  become 
acquainted  with  them,  and  greatly  to  the  pleasure  of  the 
parents,  had  made  arrangements  to  reside  under  their 
roof. 

Of  course,  such  fair  readers  as  I  may  not  have  terri- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  277 

fied  into  closing  this  volume,  by  the  too  bloody  tales  I 
have  written  out  in  these  pages,  will  readily  enough 
divine  the  reason  which  had  led  him  so  quickly  into  an 
intimacy  with  the  parents  and  their  daughter. 

Ilasbrouck  loved  Hattie  Pierson. 

lie  had,  I  believe,  told  me,  only,  of  his  happiness  when 
he  became  engaged  to  her.  Certainly,  it  was  not  gener 
ally  known.  She  was  still  so  young,  that  her  father  had 
insisted  upon  the  marriage  being  deferred  until  the  fol 
lowing  year. 

In  the  meantime,  Hattie's  beauty  had  attracted  other 
admirers. 

These  she  had  managed  to  make  understand  that  she 
did  not  love  them,  without* inflicting  upon  them,  or  her 
own  kindly  and  gentle  nature,  the  pain  of  a  refusal. 
One  of  them  was,  however,  more  obstinately  pertina 
cious.  This  was  a  man  of  the  name  of  Cockrell,  who, 
in  spite  of  every  hint  she  had  given  him,  persisted  in  his 
attentions,  and  at  last  made  her  an  offer  of  marriage. 
Being  thus  cornered,  as  it  were,  the  girl  was  compelled 
to  refuse  him.  In  the  hope  of  softening  her  refusal  by 
giving  him  a  positive  reason  for  it,  she  blushingly  owned 
that  she  was  engaged  to  Butch'  Ilasbrouck.  She  had 
learnt  to  give  him  the  same  appellation  which  all  his 
friends  had  so  long  done. 

What  was  her  horror  when  Cockrell  burst  into  a  fu 
rious  fit  of  passion,  not  only  reproaching  her  in  the  vilest 
manner,  but  swearing  not  only  to  kill  him  but  the  girl 
also. 

When  this  occurred,  Butch'  had  been  absent  with  the 
Hangers.  This  was  only  for  a  short  time,  and  on  his 
return,  Hattie  told  him  how  Cockrell  had  terrified  her. 
Her  lover  comforted  her  by  laughing  away  her  fears. 


278  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

However,  on  the  next  day,  lie  made  his  appearance 
where  I  was  living,  and  asked  me  to  go  with  him  in 
search  of  this  man. 

"What  for,  Butch'  ?"  I  asked. 

"Nare  yer  mind,  Mose!  When  I  find  the  darned 
cuss,  yer'll  know,  soon  enough.'7 

Of  course,  I  went  with  him.  But  our  search  was  a 
fruitless  one.  Cockrell  had  disappeared  from  Snsan- 
ville  the  day  before.  No  sooner  had  he  heard  that  the 
Rangers  had  returned  than  he  had  quitted  the  place. 
When  JIasbrouck  found  that  this- was  positively  so,  he 
frankly  told  me  the  reason  which  induced  him  to  search 
for  the  fellow. 

"  But  if  you  had  found  him,  Butch',  what  was  it  you 
meant  to  do  ?  " 

"  What  war  it  I  meant  to  do  ?  In  course,  shoot  the 
darned  blackguard." 

Up  to  this  moment,  he  had  been  as  cool  as  a  cucum 
ber,  or,  rather,  as  the  winter  snow  on  Bear  River  during 
my  campaign  in  that  locality.  Your  quiet  men  are 
always  dangerous,  and  so  I  told  him.  At  the  same 
time,  I  consoled  him  with  the  reflection  that  Cockrell's 
conduct  had  proved  this  fact.  After  abusing  little 
Hattie  Pierson  like  a  dastardly  cur,  he  had  cleared  out, 
immediately  after  the  return  of  her  plighted  lover. 

"  P'raps  yer're  right,  Mose !  " 

"  I  know  I  am,  my  boy !  A  white  liver  always  tells. 
So  has  his." 

"  The  varmint  has  run  tu  the  nearest  hole  he  could 
find,"  he  said  with  a  smile. 

"  If  we  catch  him,  we'll  smoke  him  out." 

We  both  laughed,  and  we  were  both  wrong  to  laugh. 
In  the  following  year,  we  again  went  upon  the  Ham- 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  279 

T)oldt,  and  shortly  after  we  had  done  so,  old  Mr.  Pierson 
decided  to  move  further  south,  to  Winamucca  Valley, 
near  Red  Hock.  "When  the  family  were  passing  up  the 
east  side  of  Honey  Lake,  they  were  attacked  by  Indians 
and  all  of  them  were  murdered.  When  found,  the 
body  of  the  old  man  was  literally  riddled  with  bullets. 
Mrs.  Pierson  and  Hattie  were  lying  in  each  other's  arms, 
clasped  tightly,  as  if  in  the  effort  to  shield  each  other 
from  death.  They  had  been  slain  in  the  same  manner. 

Intelligence  of  this  was  brought  to  us.  And  I  can 
never  forget  the  effect  it  had  upon  Butch'  Hasbrouck 
when  he  heard  it. 

His  face  became  lividly  white,  in  spite  of  the  tanning 
by  exposure  it  had  so  long  had.  Without  a  word,  he 
turned,  lifted  his  rifle  and  his  shot-pouch,  took  a  small 
bag  which  lie  filled  with  parched  corn,  and  was  leav 
ing  us.  Throwing  my  arm  around  his  neck,  I  said : 

u  Where  are  you  going  ? " 

"  After  them  as  killed  my  Hattie." 

"  Do  you  think  I  shall  not  go  with  you  ? "  I  asked. 

"  Hand  H'i  too  ?  "  exclaimed  Brighton  Bill. 

Arnold  and  Painter  were  already  preparing  to  accom 
pany  him,  and,  in  less  than  an  hour,  we  were  all  upon 
the  homeward  road. 

Our  search  was,  for  some  two  weeks,  completely  in 
vain.  Although,  near  the  scene  of  the  murder,  keen 
eyes  could  make  out  the  trail,  it  was  lost  at  a  short  dis 
tance  from  it,  owing  to  the  rocky  nature  of  the  soil. 
However,  where  we  had  first  seen  it,  Butch'  affirmed 
that  he  had  discovered  the  track  of  a  white  man.  Ar 
nold  and  myself  thought  as  he  did.  If  so,  this  man 
was  Cockrell.  The  belief  in  this  fact  made  Ilasbrouck 
untiring  in  his  attempt  to  recover  the  trail. 


280  BUCKSKIN   MOSK. 

Iii  spite  of  every  effort  on  his  part  and  ours,  we  were 
unable  to  do  so.  It  was  a  providential  chance  which 
enabled  us,  at  last,  to  fasten  upon  a  portion  of  the  guilty 
parties.  These  were,  unfortunately,  all  red-skins. 

One  morning,  while  on  Willow  Creek,  we  fell  in  with 
five  Pah-utes.  It  was  a  surprise  party  both  for  them 
and  us,  and  a  luckless  surprise  for  the  red-skins.  There 
was  no  chance  for  their  showing  fight.  We  were 
nearly  five  times  their  own  number.  Neither  could 
they  fly  ;  we  had  surrounded  them.  Butch'  had  at 
once  recognized  upon  them  portions  of  old  Pierson's 
clothing  and  some  of  Hattie's  trinkets.  We  could  not 
shoot  them  down  in  cold  blood,  and  after  a  brief  coun 
cil,  decided  upon  disarming  and  taking  them  with  us 
as  prisoners  to  Susan ville.  Had  Cockrell  been  with 
them,  I  honestly  believe  he  would  never  have  left  the 
spot  alive.  Hasbro uck  would  certainly  have  slain  him 
where  he  stood.  Nevertheless,  he  made  no  opposition 
to  our  present  purpose.  In  his  horror  and  wrath  at  the 
crime  of  the  white  scoundrel,  he  seemed  to  pass  over 
that  of  the  red  devils  who  had  aided  him  in  accomplish 
ing  it,  as  scarcely  worthy  of  notice. 

Accordingly,  they  were  taken  to  Susanville  and  placed 
in  a  species  of  lock-up  which  there  did  duty  as  a  jail. 

As  we  quitted  Willow  Creek,  it  may  perhaps  be  men 
tioned  that  one  of  the  red  ruffians  appealed  to  us  to  let 
him  go,  on  the  score  that  he  had  done  nothing  but 
"  shoot  him  gun  into  old  white  man."  This  plea  of  in 
nocence  was  necessarily  unattended  to. 

We  had  intended  to  give  them  a  fair  trial,  and  it  was 
to  come  off  very  quickly.  It  is  only  in  large  cities  that 
justice  is  slow  and  dilatory.  But  on  the  morning  im 
mediately  preceding  the  day  which  had  been  fixed  for 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  281 

it,  I  mean  the  second  morning  of  their  imprisonment, 
Harry  Arnold,  in  company  with  Butch'  Hasbrouck,  met 
me.  It  was  in  front  of  J.  I.  Steward's  hotel.  The  for 
mer  said : 

"  Cap  !  we  were  coming  to  see  you." 

"  What  is  up  now  ?  " 

He  had  given  me  the  rank  I  had  held  when  out  with 
the  Rangers.  This  he  seldom  did,  even  then,  unless 
we  were  in  active  and  trying  pursuit  of  the  red-skins. 
What  did  it  mean  ? 

"  Wall,  Mose,  du  yer  want  the  infarnal  red  cusses 
who  helped  murder  my  Hattie  to  git  clean  off  ? "  de 
manded  Butch'. 

"Certainly  not!" 

"  Shut  up,  Butch',5'  exclaimed  Harry,  "  until  we  are 
somewhere,  where  none  can  hear  a  word  you  are  saying." 

"  Ye're  jist  right.     I  will." 

When  Arnold  spoke  last,  I  noticed  that  his  strong 
fingers  had  grasped  the  arm  of  his  companion,  tightly. 
Moreover,  I  was  enabled  to  remark  that  the  face  of  the 
latter  had  more  of  its  old  vitality.  This  was,  however, 
at  present,  by  no  means  of  an  alluringly  agreeable  char 
acter.  His  eyes  seemed  to  have  the  very  devil  in  them. 
When  he  replied  to  Harry,  he  strode  rapidly  up  the 
street.  Arnold  and  myself  followed  him,  until  we  had 
passed  the  last  house  or  log  shanty  in  it,  and  had 
reached  a  clear  and  open  spot.  Here  I  came  to  a  dead  halt. 

"  And  now,  man,  what  is  it  yon  have  to  tell  me  ? " 

"  Du  yer  know  the  skunk  the  folks  in  Washington 
sent  to  Pyramid  Lake,  last  fall,  as  *Injun  agint?" 

*  Unfortunately,  I  am  unable  to  recall  the  name  of  this  individual, 
and  therefore  cannot  pillory  it. 


282  BUCKSKIN  MOSE. 

"Yes!" 

"  What  d'yer  think  he's  a'  goin'  tn  du  with  the  cuss'd 
red  devils  we  cotched  up  thar, "  as  he  said  this,  he 
gave  a  jerk  with  his  thumb  in  the  direction  leading  to 
it,  "at  Wilier  Crik?" 

"  What  can  he  do  with  them  ?  " 

"  He's  a'  goiri'  to  rin  'ern  off  to-morrer,  on  to  the  Re- 
sarvation.  So  we  can't  du  nothing  with  them,"  Has- 
brouck  replied  savagely. 

"  You  must  be  dreaming,  Butch',"  I  exclaimed  an 
grily.  "  The  thieving  scoundrel  doesn't  dare  do  it." 

"  Doesn't  he  ? "  asked  Arnold,  with  a  bitter  smile. 
"  Why !  he  isn't  even  one  of  Uncle  Sam's  blue- 
coats  ! " 

Arnold  then  explained  to  me  how  the  other  Ranger  had 
learned  that  this  plan  had  actually  been  decided  upon, 
and  gave  me  the  names  of  some  of  our  more  timidly  loyal 
fellow-citizens,  who  had  been  induced  by  the  agent  to 
guarantee  him  their  support.  What  was  there  for  us  to 
do  ?  This  fellow  actually  represented  our  respected 
Uncle  !  He  had  probably  called  for  the  assistance  of  the 
regulars  stationed  in  the  vicinity  of  Susanville.  Little 
doubt,  perhaps,  existed  in  our  minds  that  our  boys  could 
have  whipped  them  with  the  help  of  their  friends,  who,  I 
firmly  believe,  would  have  turned  out  in  mass,  at  such 
a  call  as  we  might  have  made.  But  this  would  have 
been  insurrection,  or  treason,  or  something  of  the  sort. 
I  could  see  nothing  left  for  us  to  do,  but  to  grin  and 
bear  it.  That  was  a  natural  necessity. 

But  somehow  or  other,  on  that  night  the  matter  was 
removed  from  our  hands,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Indian 
agent  aforesaid.  While  we  were  all  sleeping  the  sound 
slumber  of  law-abiding  citizens  of  the  United  States,  a 


BUCKSKIN    MOSE.  283 

party  of  masked  men  overpowered  the  jailer,  and  broke 
into  the  prison. 

On  the  next  morning,  a  fine  tree  which  stood  at  the 
side  of  Albert  Smith's  dwelling-house  bore  a  new  kind  of 
fruit.  The  red-skins  who  had  murdered  Hattie  Pierson 
and  her  parents  were  dangling  from  its  brandies.  They 
had  paid  for  their  crime  with  its  legitimate  penalty. 

It  was  a  sound  and  vigorous  specimen  of  frontier  justice. 

Suspicion  pointed  its  finger  at  many  of  my  fellow- 
citizens,  possibly,  myself  included.  The  Indian  agent 
was  furious.  But  the  perpetrators  of  this  act  of  justice, 
outside  of  law,  kept  their  own  counsel.  Up  to  the 
present,  as  I  have  reason  to  know,  suspicion  has  failed 
to  obtain  positive  proof  of  the  hands  that  hung  the  five 
Pah-ute  assassins. 

This  volume  is  now  drawing  to  a  close,  as  in  1869  I 
quitted  that  portion  of  the  country  in  which  I  had  so 
long  been  residing.  Nevertheless,  in  the  preceding  year, 
one  more  bloody  act  occurred  which  it  may  be  necessary 
to  record.  Hiram  Partridge  and  Vesper  Coburn  were 
at  this  period  keeping  the  station  at  Deep  Hole  Springs, 
to  which  my  pilgrimage  in  the  winter  of  1861  with 
lame  Tom  Bear  may  be  remembered  by  any  one  who 
has  not  shrunken  from  my  company  up  to  the  present 
time.  Hiram  was  a  cousin  of  John  Partridge,  and  had 
once  been  a  partner  with  me  in  working  my  claim  at 
the  mines  on  the  Humboldt.  Vesper  Coburn  was  an 
old  schoolfellow  and  playmate  of  mine,  when  we  were 
no  more  than  children.  Consequently,  I  no  sooner 
heard  of  their  murder  than  I  determined,  were  it  within 
my  power,  to  avenge  it. 

Previous  to  this,  the  organization  of  the  Buckskin 
Eangers  had  been  broken  up. 


284  BUCKSKIN   MOSE. 

Susanville  had  somewhat  declined  from  its  old  pros 
perity.  If  the  settlement  round  Honey  Lake  had  been 
growing  at  all,  it  was  certainly  not  doing  so,  at  its  right 
end.  Montana  had  sprung  into  sudden  prominence, 
Idaho  was  greatly  increasing  in  wealth  and  the  number 
of  its  inhabitants,  while  other  places  in  the  surrounding 
section  of  the  country,  to  the  south  and  west,  were  rapidly 
outstripping  us.  Many  of  my  old  comrades  had  gone 
to  the  two  places  I  have  more  distinctly  named,  while 
some  of  them  had  struck  on  beyond,  as  far  as  Lower  Cali 
fornia. 

"When  this  outrage  occurred,  I  chanced  to  be  at  Reno, 
a  small  town  on  the  line  of  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad, 
which  was  then  completed  as  far  as  Salt  Lake  City.  It 
is  at  Reno  the  junction  is  now  formed  with  the  line  for 
Virginia  City,  Nevada. 

Some  months  had  passed  subsequent  to  the  death  of 
Partridge  and  Coburn,  when  I  encountered  three  red 
skins  in  the  vicinity  of  this  place,  and  recognized  the 
horse  on  which  one  of  them  was  mounted  as  Hiram's 
property.  Beside  this,  they  all  of  them  wore  articles  of 
clothing  which  were  decidedly  not  made  by  the  Indians. 
Had  anything  else  been  wanting  to  convince  me  of  their 
being  the  criminals,  this  was  supplied  by  my  personal 
knowledge  of  the  faces  of  two  of  them.  These  had 
been  in  the  actual  employment  of  the  murdered  men. 

They  started  on  their  return  to  the  mountains,  and  I 
followed  them. 

My  pursuit  only  counted  one  white,  all  told — myself. 
Their  number  was  triple  mine.  The  odds  were  sufficient 
to  justify  the  weaker  party  in  employing  stratagem. 
Suffice  it  that  I  did  so,  and  counted  three  scalps  against 
the  deaths  of  my  old  playmate  and  recent  partner. 


BUCKSKIN   MOSE.  285 

If  any  doubt  had  been  entertained  by  me  of  the  jus 
tice  of  this  action,  it  would  have  been  speedily  dispelled 
by  the  additional  proof  shortly  after  afforded  me.  It 
was  only  a  few  days  after  my  return  to  the  Humboldt, 
that  a  red-skin,  known  by  me  as  Pah-ute  Jim,  accused 
me  of  killing  his  brother,  one  of  the  two  Indians  who 
had  been  employed  by  my  murdered  friends. 

"  Yes ! "  I  unhesitatingly  answered.  "  I  did  kill  him, 
because  he  helped  to  kill  Partridge  and  Coburn." 

"  Umph  ! "  he  ejaculated.  "  Batches  heap  tell  'urn 
kill.  No  kill,  Natches  heap  kill  Injin." 

Natches,  I  ought  possibly  to  mention,  was,  at  this 
time,  the  chief  of  the  Pah-utes. 


With  this  incident,  I  may  fairly  conclude.  My  Indian 
hunting,  trapping,  and  fighting  ended  with  it.  Since 
this  I  have  been  engaged  in  mining  and  other  pursuits, 
having  resided  for  some  length  of  time  in  Salt  Lake  City 
among  the  Mormons.  Should  my  first  literary  venture, 
my  dear  reader,  prove  tolerably  successful,  Heaven  only 
can  tell  whether  it  may  not  be  followed  by  another.  If 
so,  it  is  just  within  the  range  of  possibility,  I  may  turn 
from  Indian  fighting  to  Mormon  polygamy.  I  can 
scarcely  say  which  you  may  think  the  least  interesting. 
But  I  can  honestly  vouch  for  it,  the  many-wife  business 
will  be  the  most  amusing. 


HENRY  L.  HINTON, 
74:4=   BROADWAY,    INTEW   YORK. 

RIP  VAN  WINKLE,  JEFFERSON  EDITION.  IRVING'S 
Legend  Illustrated  with  original  designs  by  Darley, 
Hoppin  and  other  eminent  artists,  and  photographs  in 
photo-relief  printing  of  Jefferson  as  "Bip  Van  Winkle," 
by  Sarony.  Folio,  cloth  extra,  black  and  gold,  $2.50. 

WINTER'S  TALE.  SHAKSPEARE'S  PLAY.  EDITED  BY 
HOWAED  STAUNTON,  containing  twenty-seven  illustra 
tions  by  John  Gilbert.  Bound  in  white  morocco  paper, 
with  an  illustration  by  Henry  Van  der  Weyde.  Square 
folio,  gilt,  $1.25. 

Two  very  beautiful  little  volumes  are  Shakspeare's  "Winter's 
Tale"  and  Irving's  "Rip  Van  Winkle,"  in  the  "Jefferson  Edition." 
The  former  work  is  illustrated  by  John  Gilbert  and  Henry  Van  der 
Weyde,  and  we  hardly  need  say,  is  an  exquisite  example  of  illustra 
tive  art.  The  "Rip  Van  Winkle"  is  elegantly  printed,  and  is  em 
bellished  and  enriched  by  four  of  Sarony's  beautiful  pictures  of 
Jefferson,  of  which  we  have  already  had  occasion  to  speak  in  terms 
of  the  highest  praise.  These  pictures  are  what  are  known  as  carbon 
prints,  and  are  fine  specimens  of  the  furthest  reach  of  the  photo 
graphic  art.—  N.  Y.  Evening  Post. 

SCHOOL    DAYS    AT    MOUNT    PLEASANT.     INCLUDING 
Sketches  and   Legends  of  the   "Neutral  Ground,"  by 
RALPH    MOKLEY.      Illustrated  by  Forbes,  Bon  well  and 
Waude.      Tinted  paper,  328  pages,  12mo.,  cloth  extra,, 
elaborate,  designs  in  black  and  gold,  $1.50 
The  records  of  the  scholastic  novitiate,  when  pleasantly  written, 
are  always  entertaining,  for  they  recall  the  most  delightful  period  of 
of  every  man's  existence,  when  life  was  but  a  giddy  anticipation  of 
worldly  success  and  coveted  fame.     Tom  Brown's  ' '  School  Days  at 
Rugby  "  won  the  universal  heart,  chiefly  because  it  described  scenes 
that  are  common  to  all  academies  the  world  over,  and  gave  expres 
sion  to  feelings  that  are  experienced  as  keenly  by  school-boys  in  New 
York  as  by  school-boys  in  Warwickshire.     The  author  of  this  little 
volume,  which  has  been  beautifully  published  by  Henry  L.  Hinton, 
744  Broadway,  has  narrated  under  the  pseudonym  of  Ralph  Morley, 
the  joys  and  sorrows,  the  pastimes  and  emulations  of  a  cadet  of  the 
Mount  Pleasant  Military  Academy  at  Siug  Sing.     The  scenery  of  the 
Hudson  Highlands,  and  the  traditions  and  legends  of  the  "Neutral 
Ground,"  are  skillfully  and  effectively  interwoven  with  the  story, 
which  is  destitute  of  plot,  and  which  seeks  only  to  present  the  cadet 
life  at  Mount  Pleasant  truthfully  and  agreeably.     There  are  many 
fine  passages,  both  of  dialogue  and  description,  in  the  book,  which 
has  the  obvious  and  decided  merit  withal  of  being  a  genuine  out 
growth  of  the  soil,  a  distinctive  production  of  New  York. — New  York 
Evening  Post. 


THE  PUCK  NOVELS.  UNDER  THE  ABOVE  TITLE  WILL 
be  issued,  in  rapid  succession  a  series  of  stories  by  the 
most  popular  foreign  and  American  authors.  These 
\\ill  be  stories  with  a  single  continuous  plot,  containing 
the  pith  of  what,  in  more  pretentious  works,  is  usually 
extended  over  a  wide  field.  The  series  will  be  hand 
somely  printed,  and  tastefully  bound  in  cloth,  and  pub 
lished  at  75  cents. 

I.  THE  BELLS.  A  Romantic  Story  from  the  French  of  MM. 
EBCKMANN-CHATEIAN,  authors  of  the  drama  of  "The  Bells,"  which  is 
founded  upon  this  story. 

H.  POWDER  AND  GOLD.  From  the  German  of  ScnucKiNa. 
A  Story  of  the  Franco-Prussian  War. 

in.  THE  MAIDEN  OF  TREPPI.  From  the  German  of  PAUL 
HBYSE.  A  Story  of  the  Appenines. 

IV.  HELENE  MORTEN  AND  LA  ARRABIATA.  From  the 
German  of  PAUL  HEYSE. 


OPIRITUALISM  ANSWERED  BY  SCIENCE.    CONTAINING 

O  Proofs  of  a  Psychic  Force,  by  EDWAED  W.  Cox,  S.  L. , 
F.  B.  G.  S.  12mo.,  flexible  cloth,  50c.  The  Pheno 
mena — Is  it  Delusion  or  Fraud?  Is  it  Unconscions  Mus 
cular  Action?  Are  the  spectators  Biologised?  "What 
is  the  Psychic  Force  ?  The  Theory  of  Spiritualism. 
The  Scientific  Theory  of  Psychic  Force.  How  to  In 
vestigate. 

The  book  is  written  in  a  calm  spirit  by  one  who  reports  the  evi 
dence  of  many  experiments,  and  reasons  upon  them  like  a  man 
determined  to  sift  evidence,  and  believe  accordingly.  The  subject 
needs  further  investigation.  If  there  be  a  force  antagonistic  to  gravi 
tation,  or  exempt  from  its  influence,  or  at  least  operating  to  counteract 
gravitation  on  the  bodies  in  which  it  is  diffused,  science  should  be 
eager  to  discover  all  that  can  be  known  about  it.  We  recommend 
Mr.  Cox's  most  interesting  book  to  the  inquiring  and  curious.  The 
psychologist  and  physiologist  should  be  equally  alive  to  the  state 
ments  it  contains. — The  Westminister  Review. 


BOOTH'S  ACTING  PLAYS.  SHAKSPEARE  AND  OTHER 
Plays  Adapted  for  representation  at  BOOTH'S  THEATRE. 
8vo.,  Paper,  30c. 

I.  RICHARD  HI.  X.  RICHELIEU. 

II.  MACBETH.  XI.  MERCHANT  OF  VENICE, 

III.  MERCHANT  OF  VENICE.  [ending  with  the  4th  act 

IV.  FOOL'S  REVENGE.  of  Sbakspeare.] 

V.  ROMEO  AND  JULIET.        XH.  RICHARD  III.   Colley  Gib- 
VI.  BRUTUS.  b  rs's  version. 

VII.  LADY  OF  LYONS.  XIII.  HAMLET. 

VHI.  OTHELLO  XIV.  THE  IKON  CHEST. 

IX.  MUCH  ADO  ABOUT   NO-  XV.  JULIUS  CAESAR. 

THING. 
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